Ambivalence
by Ashley Rabbit
Summary: Tony had built his suit to protect himself and others. He should not have been caught again. He also shouldn't have to depend on a certain green eyed individual, who happens to be his cellmate, for survival. Tony and Loki whump. No Slash. Rating for scenes of torture.
1. Chapter 1

So, my second Avengers story. I just can't get enough of these guys.

Some parts of this will be inspired by a dream I had. It had nothing to do with the Avengers, but I thought it might make a good story anyway. Besides, I wanted to write something about these two.

**Update: Being the perfectionist that I am, I did a little editing to this chapter. Just a little to make it better. No major changes.  
**

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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The first thing Tony noticed was how cold it was.

He tried to turn over. To pull the sheets over his body.

But his hands were tied down.

He opened his eyes. This wasn't his bedroom. It was a dimly lit, white walled room, which was empty except for him and a chair he was tied to.

"Hey," he slurred sleepily. "_Hey!_"

He tugged against his restraints in vain.

"You know, if you're going to wake someone and _tie them up_, you should at least tell them what's going on."

He was wondering if someone was outside, within hearing range. It looked like this wasn't the case.

"If this is a joke, it's not funny."

Nothing. The only sound was from his own voice and a low, mechanical hum. An air conditioner, maybe?

Tony tried to think. He could barely pull anything from his foggy mind. He had been in bed, that much he remembered. The door had been forced open. Before he could even grab the wrist bands that would evolve into his suit, a group of people had pinned him down. A white cloth was held over his mouth, then...he was here.

He tried to shift his position. He was sore, but there was no terrible pain, so no one had injured him. But, he didn't want to give them the chance to. He had to get out of here. The suit, of course, wasn't an option. His phone and, well, everything else was in his bedroom too. No panic calls to Fury or the Avengers. Natasha was the only one who had come with him on this mission. Even once she figured out he was missing, who knew how long it would take for her to find him? And these handcuffs were just too tight. _Why_ did thy have to be so tight? He tried yanking at them again. The only thing it did was hurt his wrists. He could feel the panic rising in him. He hated being tied up. It brought back too many bad memories.

_Looks like I'm going to have more of them_, he thought. He wondered what they would ask for. Maybe they wanted him to build them a weapon too. He kind of hoped he would have another Yinsen to talk to. But no, that was selfish. That would mean they had more prisoners. He hoped that no one else was going through what he was about to.

The screeching sound of metal startled Tony out of his thoughts. The door was being opened. Tony immediately straightened up, putting the tough guy persona on. A man walked through the door. He had no hair, lots of muscle, and was wearing a coat. He must have been much more comfortable than Tony, who was still in his wife beater and boxers. Tony didn't recognize him as anyone he had fought before.

"Good evening, Mr. Stark," he said with a smile.

"Well, it was until your lovely, little assistants woke me up," Tony said.

"I'm glad you're here. I've been wanting to meet with you for a while, now," he said as though Tony had never said a word.

"You know, usually, when someone wants to meet with me, they make an appointment."

"I would, but this will probably be more effective."

"So, what is it that _you_ want? Money? Technology? Weapons?"

"Maybe, maybe not. I know it would be hard to convince you to give me anything."

"Exactly. You already knew that, so you bring me here, then you'll torture me, I'll _still_ say no, then you'll have a bunch of superheroes to deal with. They'll beat you. They win, you lose, the end."

The man laughed.

"You think you have it all figured out? It's really that simple?"

A few others walked through the door, pushing carts. Most of them had boxes. One had a plastic tub full of water.

Tony could feel that panic again. He tried to force it down.

"You did have one thing right," the man said. "But I'm not going to ask you personally for anything like weapons or technology."

Now Tony felt confused.

"What I want from you is leverage."

Two of the others put the tub at Tony's feet.

"Untie him."

They did. And Tony, well, he wasn't having anything to do with that water if had anything to say about it. He turned and kneed one of them in the gut. Another tried to hold him down, but years of being Iron Man had made him stronger than he had been in Afghanistan. He headbutted the one who was holding his chains and ran.

Two steps, then he was tackled.

He struggled against them, but he wasn't fortunate enough to have super strength like a few others in the team.

"Now, Tony. Did you really think that would work? Come on, now. You are smarter than that."

He reached down, grabbing Tony's chains, and dragged him, despite him trying to fight back, to the tub. He pushed Tony to his knees in front of it. He let go and allowed his assistants to force Tony's head into the water. He wasn't able to take in a full breath before going under. He tried to go up for air, but he couldn't. His lungs burned. He didn't know how much longer he could hold his breath.

He could feel someone grab a fistful of his hair. Then, finally, the relief of air. But it was only seconds before he was back under again.

Tony lost count of how many times he was pushed into the water. He thought it would never end, until he heard the sweet words:

"That's enough."

Tony was suddenly pulled from the water with more force than necessary and thrown backward.

"Tie him back up."

Tony was pulled up and thrown into the chair. He was too weak to fight back this time and found himself bound again.

"You see, Tony, I know how you superhero types are. Especially you. You're so stubborn, I could probably do this to you all day and you wouldn't give in, would you?"

Tony was too busy trying to catch his breath to say anything.

"But, what if it was that pretty girlfriend of yours that was in your position? What is her name? Pepper?"

Now, this got Tony's attention.

"What did you do to her?"

"Nothing. I don't plan on hurting her. That doesn't mean I won't, but let's just _pretend_ she was in your position now. For fun."

Tony gritted his teeth. Oh, if he could get loose...

"Wouldn't you do anything you could to save her? Or Rogers? Or any of the other Avengers?"

Tony didn't want to think about it. But his imagination ran away with him. Funny, how it could conjure up images of them being beaten and battered, but it couldn't come up with a decent plan to get out of there.

"Do you think they would do the same for you?"

So that's what he was trying to do. Use him against everyone. Tony's stomach tightened. That meant he had to have a camera in here somewhere. He frantically looked around for it when the man turned his back to him. He was getting something from one of the boxes.

"Guys," Tony said. The others thought he was talking to them, so he was basically ignored. "I know this looks bad, but don't give these people anything!"

The man looked up, realizing what he was doing.

"Plea..." Tony was suddenly cut off by a fist connecting to his mouth.

"You know, it might be best if you kept quiet throughout the remainder of our meeting."

Tony's lip was bleeding. He noticed that the man was now wearing brass knuckles. He continued giving Tony a brutal beating. He was bruised and cut. Blood stained his skin and shirt. He was starting to lose his composure. He wished that he hadn't, but he was only human. And this hurt too much.

He didn't know how long it had been. Minutes? Hours? But the beating finally stopped.

"Get him out of here."

The others untied him again, grabbing his arms. He couldn't even stand. But that didn't matter. They certainly didn't mind dragging him. They took him from the room, into the hall. It was brightly lit and didn't help Tony's headache. They reached another door and pulled him through. This room was bigger, but was divided by a row of prison bars. They slid the barred door open and ungracefully threw him in. Nothing else was done. They just left, which Tony was glad for.

He slowly pulled himself up, cringing all the way. He eased his back against the wall and tried to just focus on breathing. He rubbed his forehead. This room was as bright as the hall.

He looked over his surroundings, hoping for something he could use to escape. He didn't see anything he could really get to. It was like a blank slate. No help at all. Except...

There was someone else in there.

He froze. The person was in the back corner, wrapped tightly in a dingy blanket that covered even his face. Or her. But he was unsure of what to do. Surely they had heard when those 'lovely little assistants' had pushed him in there. He hoped the person wasn't dead.

Curiosity got the best of him. He had to find out for sure.

Tony crawled over to him. He softly shook the person's shoulder.

"Hey. Wake up."

He stayed still. Tony shook him harder.

"Helloooo."

The person took a swing at him, barely missing. Tony reeled back, falling over. He scrambled to his feet, putting his fists in front of him. The blanket had fallen around the man's shoulders. His long, black hair was ruffled, his green eyes were clouded with annoyance and exhaustion, and he had an angry glare etched on his face.

Tony recognized him.

And he felt sick.

"Loki?"

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Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. Please review and let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, time for an update! Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

* * *

They stared at each other in a state of tense confusion. Like two dogs that happened upon one another and weren't sure if they should fight or run. Of course they would throw Tony in a cage with one of his worst enemies. Why wouldn't they? What fun it would be to put him in a place where he may have to fight someone despite his horrible condition. Like Daniel in the lions' den. No rest for the weary.

Or, apparently, the wicked.

Loki was now sitting straight up, with the blanket having fallen in his lap. He was dressed in a T-shirt and baggy pants that were both too big for him. He looked less of a regal, yet maniacal prince and more of a twenty something or another year old that had been thrown around a bit too much. He had the cuts and the bruises, but they were older. In the process of healing. But they stood out a bit more, with his skin being so pale.

He smiled and let out a laugh in disbelief.

"I must have finally lost it," he said. "This can't be Tony Stark that I'm seeing, can it?"

"The one and only," Tony said, slowly put his hands out defensively. Even Tony Stark knew his limits. Even as much as he hated the guy, he wanted peace. At least, until he healed and could get his hands on his suit.

"Look," he said. "You probably already know that this wasn't my idea. I don't want any trouble. You stay in your corner and I'll stay in mine, okay?"

Tony carefully sat down, pain going through his body as he moved. He was still wet, which made the cold even worse than before. He tried not to let it show. This was a survival of the fittest sort of situation. But even though he could hide the pain, there was no hiding the shivers.

"So, why exactly are you here?" Loki asked, his voice sounding bitter. "Did your Iron Man ruin their fun or was it your big mouth that got you into trouble? Or perhaps they are just getting more creative with tormenting me. With you in here, I may go mad."

"Heh, well, I can't imagine you being a joy to be around either."

"You didn't answer my question."

"They got me as a companion for you. It was exactly as you said. To drive you mad."

Loki rolled his eyes. "I knew it. It was your big mouth, wasn't it?"

Tony shrugged. He noticed Loki attempting to stand. He quickly jumped to his feet, fists up again.

"Don't try it, Cat Woman."

Loki snorted. "Don't try what? Surely you don't think you could fight me?"

"I can if I have to."

"Yes, you could try. You most certainly would not succeed. Besides, I was simply stretching my legs. It can get cramped in here, being a prisoner and all."

"Of course you weren't trying to sneak up on me."

"No, Stark, I wasn't trying to sneak up on you. I easily could fight you, if I wanted, but it would be quite boring, considering the shape you're in."

"You're not in very good shape either. You know what I think? I think you're stalling."

Loki leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "Not stalling. Threatening."

Tony smirked. "At least he's clever."

He slowly sat down again. His legs were about to give, anyway. Loki barely seemed to notice.

Tony let out a tired sigh. When he had wished for another Yinsen, this wasn't what he had in mind. Yinsen was a good man. He was a kind man. He'd saved his life and helped him build the Mach I. Loki had left New York in shambles and they were still rebuilding, over three years later. He had left Clint in a mess. He even had to be relieved from his duties for a while because of it. It was hard for all of them to watch, especially Natasha. And then there was Coulson...

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose. He couldn't think about that stuff. He was going to have to live with him for a while, so there was no use in making it any harder than it had to be.

"How long have you been here?" Tony asked. He couldn't stand the quiet that had settled over the cage. It gave him too much of a window to think of things that made him anxious and angry.

"I don't know. How could I when I have no means to tell time?" he snapped.

"Calm down. It was just a question."

Loki sat down, legs finally tired from the standing. No answer.

"You said they tortured you too? I mean, you look like you've really been through it."

"What?"

"Your beauty marks. I guess I'm not the only one who's big mouth got him into trouble."

Loki looked at the bruises on his arm. He grabbed his blanket and wrapped it around himself again.

Avoidance. Hiding.

"You know, I'm really wondering why you're still here. Aren't you supposed to be able to shape shift or teleport or something? Couldn't you just leave if you wanted to?"

Loki smiled. He looked around the room. Tony could see some nervousness in his eyes.

"Not supposed to talk about it?"

"They're watching us."

So they had cameras in here too. That was no surprise.

"I see," Tony lowered his voice. "But you could still get out of here if you wanted, right? What did they do to scare you so much?"

Loki sighed in frustration. "You talk too much, Stark. You won't last very long here."

"I'll be fine."

"No you won't. They will try their hardest to break you. You've been through this before. You're weak. Scarred. Barton told me. This doesn't get easier with time. They'll have you crying like a child in a few days."

'Barton told me'. Tony wanted to punch him.

"Yeah, I have been through this before," Tony snapped. "I'm reminded of it every day. Maybe I do have my moments of weakness. That's what happens when people like them and _you_ hurt others."

Loki gave him a blank stare. Unreadable. "Struck a nerve, Stark?"

Tony, surprisingly, didn't answer. He was too angry to come up with a witty remark. He was angry that he let Loki see that he had, in fact, struck a nerve. Angry that he had brought up his PTSD, which he was ashamed of, no matter how much Pepper tried to convince him otherwise. Because he was Iron Man and things like water and small, dark spaces and nightmares shouldn't affect him the way they did.

Loki noticed his discomfort and couldn't help but feel a bit of satisfaction. Yes, he had been trapped in here for much too long, but he still had it. He could still play with one's mind and emotions and get the perfect result. He had the upper hand. And since they were forced to live together, he wanted to make sure it stayed that way.

oooooooooooooooo

Tony had decided that even being alone with his thoughts was better than attempting to have a conversation with Loki. But even his thoughts were starting to bore him at this point. He had given up trying to find a way out. The bars were reinforced and there was nothing there to really build anything from. There were lights, but they were outside of the bar area, so it wasn't like he could take them apart and create something new from them. Even if there was a way he could get to them, there was the camera to worry about. At least in Afghanistan they had given him a task. Something to occupy his mind and eventually, use it against them. This place, the bright, obnoxiously white room, the anti-Afghanistan, the Bizarro-Afghanistan, was somehow worse.

He had nothing but a concrete floor to lie on. It hurt his aching body. And even though he was finally dry, he was still so cold. He glanced over at Loki, who had fallen asleep. He wondered if he could convince him to share that blanket. Probably not. But it would be interesting to try.

His thoughts were interrupted when the far door of the room was opened. Tony tensed up. One of the drones walked in, carrying two covered bowls. He slid the barred door open, then closed it before Tony could even think to run out.

The drone roughly pushed the bowl into Tony's hands. He then walked over to Loki.

"Heh, you know, I don't really like being handed things," Tony said.

"I'm here to do my job," the drone said. "I don't really care what you do or don't like."

"So you guys _can_ talk. I think I liked it better when you were quiet."

The drone took something out of his pocket. It was a taser.

"Keep it up, Stark."

Tony didn't say anything else.

Loki was still asleep. The drone kicked his leg to wake him. Loki grunted and muttered something that Tony didn't quite hear, but he was obviously not happy about his treatment.

"Wake up," the drone commanded. He shoved the remaining bowl into Loki's hands. Still not fully awake, Loki nearly dropped it.

"Better be careful with that," the drone said as he left their cage. "That's all you're getting for the day." He left the room.

The bowl in Tony's hands was warm. It felt so good. He pressed it against his belly, trying to get rid of the cold that had settled in him. Loki, on the other hand, wasted no time in removing the lid. He scooped the contents out with his hand and stuffed it into him mouth. It was beef and vegetables and it smelled so good.

But then Tony started to wonder, why would they give them good food after imprisoning them? He cautiously removed the lid from his bowl. Inside was some sort of greyish, brownish material. It looked like...oatmeal. And not very good oatmeal, either.

"Okay, this is ridiculous," Tony said.

Loki looked at him with questioning eyes, mouth full of food.

"You get a blanket and meat and vegetables and _meat_ and I get this? What are they trying to do here?"

Loki shrugged and continued shoving food in his mouth as if he hadn't eaten for days.

Tony put the lid back on the bowl and continued to use it as a heater. That was apparently all it was good for. He wasn't going to be a part of these games.

"If you're not going to eat that, give it to me," Loki said between bites.

"I'll eat it later." Tony certainly wasn't giving it to him.

"There is no later. It won't be long before they come in and take their dishes back, whether you've had your fill or not. Give it to me."

"No." Tony turned away, protectively shielding his bowl from the ravenous maniac across from him. He removed the lid again, peaking at the 'food'. He _was_ a bit hungry. And they did say this was all they were getting for the day. He grabbed the slimy oatmeal with his fingers. He hesitated for a moment, but finally put it in his mouth. It had no sugar. The texture was awful. He almost spit it out, but he forced it down.

Loki looked disappointed, but continued eating his own food. That delicious looking food. It was so unfair.

Tony was eventually able to eat half of the bowl of oatmeal before the same drone came back and snatched them away from the two prisoners.

"Too good for oatmeal, Stark?" the drone said.

"Not when it's edible."

"Well, don't worry. You'll be able to clean your bowl soon enough. This one was hard enough to feed at first," he nodded toward Loki. "Had to force feed him once, when he tried to starve himself."

Loki looked annoyed. He obviously didn't like for him to speak of that.

Tony waited until the drone left. He had to ask. "You tried to...?"

"You will be wasting your time asking me about it."

"Hey, I have more than enough time."

"I still do not wish to speak of it."

He laid back down and pulled the blanket over himself again, turning away from Tony.

Okay, Tony guessed it wasn't tactful to ask about something like that. He didn't want to talk about his problems, so why would he expect Loki to talk about his?

He sighed and laid down, himself. He curled into a ball, trying to stay warm. He was so tired. All he wanted to do was sleep.

Eventually he did. And it was, as he expected, full of nightmares. Although he was able to have one dream, where he was back at home with the team. And Rhodey. And Pepper. It was such a nice dream, that he didn't want to wake up.

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So, here you go! Tony and Loki interaction. I'm going to try to update about once a week or something close to it. Next Chapter, Pepper and the Avengers find out about Tony's kidnapping. And also, more torture for Tony and Loki. Poor babies. I hope you guys liked what you read. More reviews are appreciated. ;)


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the all reviews! You guys are awesome. Sorry this one is a bit later than usual. I've been having the hardest time with it, trying to move the plot forward and such. It's so long too. Longer than I was going for. I hope this one is better than the last two, because I think I could have done a lot better on them. But, I guess that's what happens when I stay up all night writing while I'm half asleep.

Anyway, now that my rambling is over, here's chapter 3.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Pepper sat her plate on the table in front of her. Before she started on her dinner, she flipped through the channels on the TV, finally settling on the news. She poured herself a glass of wine, something she really needed. The news wasn't playing anything particularly interesting, but Tony wasn't there to talk to and she was too tired to go out. She would probably go to bed early. It would be nice to be able to sleep through out the night without her boyfriend interrupting her when he finally decided to come up from his workshop. And then, somehow proceeding to take up the majority of their bed. Despite the many little annoying things he did, she did miss him. She always hated when he had to go on a mission. She would always be left there to worry. Trouble had a way of following him, so how could she not be anxious?

Pepper took a sip of her wine, grabbing her tablet to check the stocks. Her phone buzzed, signaling a call. Seeing it was from her assistant, she answered, wondering how much extra work she would have to do before turning in.

"Hello, Maggie. What's going on?"

"Ms. Potts," she sounded frantic. "The board of directors are holding a last minute meeting. You really need to hurry down here. It's an emergency."

"Okay, I'm coming," she stood from the couch and put her glass back down on the table. "What happened?"

"It's Tony."

Pepper froze.

"I don't know what happened exactly, but someone kidnapped him," Maggie's voice was shaking by now, mirroring what Pepper was feeling.

"I'll be down in a few minutes," was all Pepper could manage to say. She hung up the phone, sticking it in her pocket as she stumbled toward the door. She felt like she was in shock. This couldn't be happening again. Surely Fury or someone would have let her know. How could she have first heard it from her assistant?

She somehow made it to the elevator, shaky fingers pressing the button to the base floor of Stark Tower. It seemed to take forever for the elevator to reach it's destination. When it finally did, it was all she could do not to fall apart as she made her way through the halls and into the board room. Everyone was there, waiting for her. They all wore concerned expressions on their faces. She slowly walked to the front, feeling like she was going to be sick as she faced them. She asked them to please tell her what had happened and they complied. Apparently, someone had taken Tony and was holding him prisoner, filming him being waterboarded and beaten. They had all received the video via e-mail. Tony's own personal e-mail, which meant that they had hacked into the system. So, not only was Tony's life in danger, but the security of Stark Industries was as well.

"What did they want?" she asked, surprised at how even her voice was.

"He wants us to hand over a project file called E92," the President of the company, Ralph Elmer said. "It's nothing we have any access to. We've never even heard of it. It must be one of Mr. Stark's personal projects."

"I see."

"We were hoping you might know something about it."

Pepper gave him a small smile. "Tony doesn't really discuss any of his personal projects with anyone anymore."

He sighed. Some of the others shifted uncomfortably in their seats.

"Even if I did have it, you aren't considering giving it to them, are you?" As sick with worry and shock as she was, Pepper knew better. She had been involved with Iron Man and the Avengers far too long not to. Even if they gave this person what he wanted, it didn't guarantee that Tony would be given back to them. The only thing that was guaranteed was that E92, whatever it was, would be used against all of them.

"It's on the table."

"No, no, no. It's not on the table. That is an absolute last resort."

"What do you expect us to do?"

"Call Fury! That should have been the first thing anyone did."

"We did call Fury, right after we called you. He's sending Dr. Banner and Mr. Rogers over as we speak."

"Okay, then why don't we wait until we work things out with them before we make any decisions? Especially when such decisions could get us all into trouble. Especially Tony."

She sat down, a sudden bout of weakness washing over her. Everything felt so surreal.

"We have to consider every option..."

"And we will. But as I said, it's a last resort. The chances of them releasing Tony are very small."

Her hands were starting to shake. Where were Steve and Bruce?

"This is something that's beyond our control at any rate," Eric Mills, the Vice President, said. "Why were we even sent the video when S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't know anything about it? It makes no sense."

No, it didn't make any sense. Nothing did, at the moment. All Pepper knew was that Tony was in trouble and it was taking every ounce of her power not to do anything rash.

The glass door opened, causing their attention to shift. Steve Rogers walked in, with the commanding presence that they all truly needed. Pepper let out a small sigh of relief. Now, they could get somewhere.

"What happened to Tony?"

oooooooooooooo

_Rome, Italy_

Natasha had been annoyed when Tony was late for their meeting that morning.

She had become suspicious when a few minutes had turned into half an hour.

She had a bad feeling when her phone suddenly stopped working after she tried to call him.

She went back to the hotel, hoping that her phone shutting down was just a coincidence, a problem that could easily be fixed. But when she opened the door to his room and he was nowhere to be found, she knew they had been compromised. There were signs of struggle. The sheets were all over the place, a lamp had been knocked over, and a drawer had been pulled almost all the way out. The two things he always had with him, his phone and his suit, were still there.

This was not good.

She quietly searched his room, looking for any clues that might lead to where he would be. She tried her phone again in an attempt to call Fury, but it still wasn't working, so she kept going over every detail. As a spy, she was trained to look for the little things. She pulled the sheets off of the bed, hoping to find _something_. She examined every inch of them. No blood, thankfully. But there was nothing else either. Whoever had done this had been very careful, not leaving a trace of anything behind.

She had looked for over an hour, trying her phone over and over again. Nothing there and phone was still out of service. She sat down on the bed, trying to think. The most obvious thing to do was to suspect the very people they were after. A terrorist organization that had been running all over Italy and was now targeting a new green energy company in Rome. Problem was, they were smart and very well trained. They were expert computer hackers, which was why Tony was chosen to go on this mission. They tried, and many times succeeded, in being untraceable. Because of this, the locals began to call them 'ghosts'. Natasha stood. She couldn't just sit around. She had to start somewhere.

She went downstairs to the lobby and quickly got the attention of the receptionist.

"Excuse me. Could you tell me if someone had an extra key to room 975? There are only supposed to be two."

"Let me see," the receptionist went to his computer, searching for the information. "No. Only two keys are out for that room. Is something wrong?"

"Yes," she leaned forward. "I am S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Black Widow. My partner Tony Stark was staying in that room and now he's missing."

The receptionist didn't seem alarmed. "Are you sure he hasn't just gone out?"

"Would I be here asking you if he had?"

He guessed not. Now he was starting to pale a bit. Everyone knew who Tony Stark was and to have a high profile business man/Avenger suddenly go missing from your hotel was bad publicity.

"I need to look at your security feed," Natasha said. "Someone was in his room earlier and I need to find out who it was."

"Yes ma'am. Of course."

He motioned her to sit while he contacted the manager, letting him know what was going on. It wasn't long before she was lead into a back room full of televisions with cameras recording the halls of the hotel.

"Here is the footage for the hall outside of Mr. Stark's room," the security guard said. "What times do you need?"

Natasha thought for a minute. "I need the footage from 7pm yesterday til about 11:30 this morning."

"That's a large window."

"I know."

He started to set everything up for her.

"Is there a phone here I can use?" Natasha asked.

"Sure." he pointed to a phone at his desk. She went over to it and dialed Fury again. Thankfully, it rang. He picked up in one ring.

"Who is this?" he asked.

"Fury, this is Black Widow."

"Natasha, what is going on over there? I've been trying to call you! We were thinking they got you too."

A confused look crossed her face. "Sir, what are you...?"

"Tony's gone missing. Again. And someone has been messing around with the our computers and Stark's."

Well, that explained her phone going out.

"How did you know Tony was missing?"

"His captors sent us a video. They want one of his project files in exchange for him."

Well, that was certainly a lead.

"Fury, they cut off my cellphone and I'm using an unsecure line, so I don't have much time. What are my orders?"

"Stay there and try to find out what you can. And lay low. I'm sending Hawkeye out there now. He'll give you the details."

"Yes sir," she said. He hung up the phone. She sat the phone down, feeling a little better now that she had something to go on.

"Everything is ready," the security guard said. Natasha nodded and went over to the screen to look over the feed.

"You Avengers being here," he said slowly. "Does this have anything to do with the Ghosts?"

Natasha didn't look away from the screen. "I can't give you any details about our mission."

He nodded and didn't ask her any more questions.

ooooooooooooooooo

Tony woke up feeling disoriented and sick. Their food wasn't exactly agreeing with his stomach. He wrapped his arms around his belly, hoping that he wasn't going to throw up. The lights had been dimmed, but it wasn't helping his still throbbing headache. If anything, it seemed to have increased.

"I guess it's too much to ask for some pain medicine," Tony said to himself. He rolled over onto his other side and immediately noticed a change in his environment.

Loki was gone.

It was a startling realization because there was only one explanation Tony could think of. And even though Tony pretty much hated the guy, he felt that no one deserved that. He crawled over to Loki's corner, grabbing the blanket. It was cold, no body heat left on it. He wondered how long they had him and how bad he was going to look when they brought him back. He looked down at the filthy piece of cloth in his hands.

Maybe it would be a nice gesture to...keep it warm for him.

He slowly wrapped it around himself. It felt so good to finally feel some warmth. It was scratchy and uncomfortable, but at that moment, it didn't matter to him. He laid back, letting his mind wander. He let himself drift back through memories, bringing himself some comfort. Thinking of the time he spent with Pepper when they had gone to the Caribbean one summer. How pretty she was when she slept next to him, how relaxing it was to just sit on the beach, enjoying each others company. He also remembered how she would stay up all night with him, when the stress was too much for him. When bad memories kept him from falling asleep. He had been getting better, but now, if he made it through this, it would be back to square one. But at least he had someone there to help him through it.

It seemed like an hour had past before the guy who had been feeding them came back, hauling a miserable looking Loki behind him. Tony threw the blanket off and crawled back to his side faster than he thought would be possible. But not before he received a glare from his cell mate. The drone opened the cell and threw Loki inside before locking up and leaving without a word. Loki let out a small whimper when he landed. It took him a minute to get up and sit upright. He wasn't covered in any new injuries. At least, none that were obvious. The only thing that was a sign of injury were two identical cuts in the bend of his arms. But he looked exhausted. No, he looked way past exhausted. More like he was drugged. He was also shaking terribly, hardly able to keep his composure.

"Wow," Tony said, quietly. He remembered the cameras and he didn't want anyone listening to his conversations, no matter how pointless they were. "You look awful."

"I imagine so," Loki said, his voice slow and slurred.

"Are...you okay?"

"Fine," he turned and set his unfocused eyes on Tony. "But please allow me to set some ground rules. If I ever catch you touching my stuff again, I will make you feel as though you have been through one hundred wars. Do I make myself clear?"

"Hey, you weren't using it."

"I don't care."

"Guess no one taught you how to share."

"Share? All anyone does when it comes to me is _take_."

He winced as he tried to get comfortable, something they both quickly learned was pretty much impossible here.

"By the way," Loki continued. "You're next."

Tony figured that.

"You'll probably come back looking much worse than I. They don't particularly like you."

"Yeah, I'm sure they've fallen in love with you. What with that charming personality of yours."

"They favor me over you," Loki smiled. "Can't you tell?"

"You know, it's really sad that you're that happy about getting better scraps from the people holding you prisoner. You're taking needy to a whole 'nother level."

"I am _not_ needy. I just know how to use things to my advantage."

"That's why you're in a five star room, right? Are they giving you drugs if you behave? Because you sure do look like you've had some. Is there any way I can cash in on that deal?"

"I'm not on drugs."

"You sure?"

"Positive. My punishments are...somewhat different than yours. Usually."

"That so?"

Loki nodded. He suddenly looked very uncomfortable. The look quickly disappeared, though. "Thankfully, it's not as often as it once was."

"Is that something to look forward to? They get bored with you after a while?"

"No, not with you. They'll probably become more frequent with you."

"Great."

It wasn't long before someone came back. A different person, this time. But either way, Tony knew they had come for him. He took in a deep breath and readied himself for a fight.

He, of course, wasn't as strong as he had been before. While he had made a group of them struggle earlier, this one person had no trouble handcuffing him. Loki did nothing but watch with slight interest. He had no reason to help, so he stayed out of trouble. Tony was taken from the cage, having a hard time walking on his sore legs. He tried to prepare himself for what was coming, but he couldn't. He was scared.

"Good luck, Stark," he heard Loki say. But by the sound of his voice, he knew he didn't care about his luck at all.

He was taken to the same room as before. The same chair. The same man who's name he still didn't know. Said man smiled at Tony.

_Okay, let's get this over with._

"Day two, Tony. Shall we get started?"

* * *

Now that that part is done...

It's getting a bit hard writing Tony and Loki's scenes. I love writing their dialogue, but I'm trying not to get redundant with them, since they're trapped with nothing much to do. I don't want to make the pacing too fast and I also don't want them to just become friends right off the bat. There's a bit too much that's happened between Loki and, well, all of the Avengers for that to happen. Anyhoo, I hope you guys enjoyed it and please leave me a review. More reviews inspire me to write more. :D


	4. Chapter 4

Guys, I think I have some apologizing to do. I didn't mean to leave you like that, especially so early in the story. But in a way, the break was kind of a good thing because I was able to work the story out a little better, coming up with new plot points. So, thanks for sticking with me and for all of the reviews! Here's the next chapter!

Disclaimer: Marvel owns this bunch, not me.

* * *

This was not supposed to happen.

This was the boy who would beg for him to chase the monsters from under his bed at night. This was the boy who could get them out of trouble with such ease, it almost made Thor envious. This was the boy who once worshiped the very ground his big brother stood on. Even when they grew and their relationship strained, he would always make Thor laugh when he was down. They were once best friends. They once loved each other.

Now, this very boy, now a man, had trapped Thor into the helicarrier's glass enclosure. And Thor was forced to watch as he killed Coulson and held the woman he loved hostage.

"Loki," Thor carefully stepped closer to the see-through wall, reaching out. "Brother, you don't want to do this."

Loki answered with a harsh laugh. "Why?" He tightened his grip on Jane. Then, playfully twirled the scepter around his fingers.

"Killing these innocent people will only cause you harm. You will have to pay the consequences of your actions."

Loki snorted. "I suppose it wouldn't be so bad to live on earth for a few days. Maybe I'll find a pretty little human pet for myself as well. Speaking of which..."

He pointed the tip of the scepter to Jane's chest. She tried to inch away from it, to no avail.

"What shall I do with you? Control you for a while or just kill you now?"

"Let her go!" Thor lifted his hammer, ready to strike the wall.

"Oh, I don't think you want to do that. Do you remember what happens if something hits that hard enough?"

Thor looked from his hammer, to the wall.

"You won't be saving anyone that way."

He tried to think. Tried to formulate some kind of plan to get out, to save Jane and perhaps his brother too.

_Where are the others? Why has no one come to help?_

"Pity. You know this is your fault, right? Poor little woman. What is your name again? Jane? And that poor little agent."

He looked over toward Coulson's bleeding body. A look of sorrow fell over his face. "Poor, poor thing."

"Loki, enough! Is this really how far you have fallen? You hate me so much, you would destroy everything I hold dear? _My_ brother would never do such a cruel thing!"

"Too bad I'm not your brother. No, I am a monster. That is all."

"You are not a monster. You don't have to be"

"Sorry. It's in my blood, to crave blood."

He lifted the scepter, ready to plunge it into Jane. She squeezed her eyes shut.

Thor's eyes flew open. His adrenaline was spiked and his heart thudded against his chest. A small stream of light lit the room, falling over his golden hair, warming him. There was a desk. A mirror. He was lying on a bed that was too small and too hard with the sheets pulled up to his ears.

He didn't want to move. He was afraid to move. Afraid that he might be thrown back into that horrible memory, twisted by his own mind to make it even worse.

He let out a deep breath. Then another. And another.

"Jane?" he called out, voice rough from sleep. She didn't answer, but there was a rumble outside.

He sat straight up, all but throwing the sheets off of him. He snatched his hammer from it's spot beside the bed and ran out of the camper.

"Jane!" he called out again, once his foot hit the dusty ground.

At first he couldn't see her. He tightened his grip around the hilt of his hammer. His panicked daze turned into a vengeful anger. If anything had happened to her...

But then he saw her. Sitting in the mobile lab, typing away at her laptop and taking small sips of water. Darcy was next to her, listening to her iPod with her feet on the table. Relief settled over him so quickly, he nearly fell over.

She looked up when he finally approached. A smile grew on her face.

"Hey," she said, standing to give him a hug. "Feeling better?"

"Yes," he smiled and hugged her back. No, was a better answer, but it made him feel...weak? Besides, he didn't want to worry her. A little lack of sleep wouldn't hurt him much.

"I guess you felt so good you decided to give us a midafternoon storm," Darcy said.

It took a second for her words to worm their way into his understanding.

"Storm?"

"Yeah," she pointed behind him. He turned around. Sure enough, there were dark clouds in the distance. The culprit of the rumbling he had heard in the camper.

He turned his attention away from the girls, focusing with confusion on what was happening in front of him.

"Thor?" Jane said. "What's wrong?"

"I...I think you two should go into town and find a place to stay indoors."

"What's going on?"

"I'm not sure."

He spun his hammer and took off through the air. The cluster of storm clouds were small and weak. What they were lacking in wind and lightning was made up for in drenching rainfall. He was soaked, seconds after he landed. The clouds were stagnant. But the strangest thing of all was the spark of energy in the air. It was all too familiar.

Magic.

Why and how someone else was creating this storm was beyond him. He was the overseer of thunder and this certainly was not his doing. And to tell you the truth, it was starting to make him angry.

Thor lifted his hammer into the air and called down his own lightning. Much stronger than this magic trick in the middle of the desert. The flashing light ripped through the clouds, interrupting the magic and quickly dispersing the clouds. The rain stopped falling, leaving behind wet sand and a wet, well, him. Funny though, how the magic still lingered in the air. It was a cold, pulsating sort of energy. It was also giving him a headache. Thor tried to see if he could pinpoint where it was coming from. Only, it seemed to be coming from everywhere at once.

Thor looked behind him. Jane's camper was gone. Good. They would be safe. Right now, he needed to find out who was responsible for this.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The tension in the air was thick. People went about their lives as they did every day, but they did so in a different manner. Waiting with bated breath for some terrible event to take place. Natasha had seen it plenty of times before. The Manhattan Invasion, 9/11, Budapest. It was common behavior after an attack. They never knew if they would be a target again. They knew they were sitting ducks. They knew they were at the mercy of their adversaries. It was a bad position to be in.

She walked through the streets of Rome as quickly as she could, guard up. No, she hadn't been taken. Yet. That didn't mean she couldn't be. But her own safety wasn't her main concern at the moment.

Adessi International was the green energy company that S.H.I.E.L.D. had been in charge of protecting for the last few weeks. The main target of the terrorists, despite them seeming to have something against most of the people in their homeland. Their CEO, Mia Adessi, had almost been kidnapped herself. The result was her becoming very paranoid, wilting with fear anytime Natasha or Tony approached her. The 'Bearers of Bad News'. she called them. They had to coax her out of having hysterics more than once.

'It's really sad what they turned her into,' Tony had said.

He knew her from a fling they'd had a few years ago. They met at Stark Expo 2007. Tony being Tony, thought she was pretty enough to sweet talk his way into having sex. She stayed around for about a month. Tony would call her whenever he needed a date for a red carpet event or someone to sleep with. They were never serious and she eventually moved onto more important things. Taking over her father's company was one of them.

Natasha was really dreading this meeting. Dealing with emotional people was not one of her strong points. She was trying to decide if she should be blunt or ease into telling her. But how does one even ease into telling someone that their protector and ex had been kidnapped and they could be next?

As soon as she approached the building, Natasha was surrounded by guards. Some were hired by the company, others were appointed by S.H.I.E.L.D. They let her in, asking questions, hoping she had found something. She had to get to Mia first, so they lead Natasha to her office where they would find out what had happened.

Mia was already shaking, brushing her hand through her boyish short hair. Her dark eyes were wide as she asked in her thick accent, "It's something bad, isn't it?"

"I'm afraid so," Natasha said.

"Where is Tony?"

Blunt or easy? Blunt or easy? Blunt or...?

"He's missing. That's why I'm here. Someone has taken him and I suspect it's the people who are after you."

Mia gasped, clasping her hands over her mouth. Natasha reached for her. She didn't want her to get out of hand.

"Ms. Adessi, stay with me. Calm down."

"They have Tony? How?!"

"I'm not sure. We're trying to find out."

"I don't understand how this could happen! He's Iron Man! How could they have gotten him?"

"Whoever did this took him in his sleep. His suit was left behind."

Mia's breathing sped up and her face grew pale. Natasha stood and went beside her.

"Mia, please try to be calm."

"How can I be calm?! You've lost one of your own people! I can't feel safe if they can just steal people right from under your nose! They're probably doing awful things to him!"

"We're going to find him."

"No one has been able to find them."

"You're going to have to trust me. They can be found. They will slip up eventually. No organization is perfect. Besides, Tony is pretty resilient. I'm sure he'll be okay."

Mia didn't look convinced, but she gave a small smile anyway.

"Maybe. He might be the first one they willingly give back," she laughed.

Okay, disaster averted.

"I'm going to need everyone here on lock down. I don't want you to go anywhere without a body guard. I need to meet with another S.H.I.E.L.D. agent later, but I'll stay here until then."

"Okay. Thank you."

She shook Natasha's hand before they left the room.

ooooooooooooooooo

It was a few hours before Natasha left Mia with her guards. She wasn't sure exactly when Clint would be there, but she had a pretty good guess. However, when she did get back to the hotel, she saw him sitting patiently in the lobby with his bags beside him. Well, he had certainly gotten there a lot earlier than she expected. With his back turned to her, she unintentionally snuck up on him.

"You're early, for once," she said, making him jump.

"Geez, Tasha, you scared me," he got up to face her. "And try being on time. We have a lot to do."

She gave him a look that told him to watch himself. He just smiled at her.

"Let's go," she motioned for him to follow her. "I want you to take a look at Tony's room to see if you can find anything I might have missed."

"Alright."

When they got to the room, Clint cautiously went in before Natasha. He put his bags down by the bed before picking up the sheets and tossing them back where they should be.

"They sure did leave this place in a mess, didn't they?"

He sat on the bed and started rummaging through his luggage.

"Come here. I need to show you something."

Natasha sat down beside him. He pulled his tablet out and opened a video link.

"This is what they sent us," he said, handing it to Natasha. She took it.

It was a typical ransom. The guy spends the first part of the video making his demands. The second part was what they were doing to Tony. Seeing them force his head into the tub of water was...upseting. She didn't know everything that happened when Tony had been captured before. But she did know about the water boarding and how it had affected him. With each push into the tub, she could practically see the progress he had made disappear into the water. Then the punches started.

Natasha rarely showed her emotions. This situation was no different. But Clint wasn't watching the video. He kept his focus on the floor, the wall, anywhere but that screen. He had seen the footage once. He didn't want to see it again.

"They left their contact information in the e-mail," Clint said when the video had ended. "We tracked it, but the only place it got us was an empty warehouse. Some of the other agents are keeping their eye on it, though."

Natasha didn't seem to hear him. She rewound the video before pausing it on the face of Tony's captor. She stared at it in deep thought.

"What is it Tasha?"

"I know him."

"Huh?" Clint leaned over to look at the screen.

"The man who was beating Tony. I've worked with him before."

"You're kidding. You think you could find him, then?"

"I'm not sure. He has been trained by some of the best, like I was. If he wants to stay hidden, he'll stay hidden."

"But you actually know things about him that'll make it easier for us. Right?"

Natasha laid the tablet on the bed and let out a distressed sigh.

"Tasha?"

Clint gently put his hand on her shoulder. "You okay?"

"I don't know that much about him Clint. I don't know about his past or anything like that. We weren't friends. All I knew was that he scared me."

Clint's eyebrows knitted together from hearing that confession. There were only two times that she had ever admitted fear to him. He wasn't used to it. And the knowledge that the man who had their partner and friend could create fear in Black Widow's heart was making him feel ill.

"His name is Innokenti and he's a classic sadist," she continued. "He would get some sort of sick, twisted joy out of other people's pain. I always had a bad feeling whenever I was around him. Like, one wrong move and he would have me too. I couldn't trust him. No one could. He would turn on you as soon as he was done using you."

"How did he get work if no one could trust him?"

"He was good at what he did. People hired him because he was so terrifying."

"And of course this had to be the guy that kidnapped Tony. How much of a chance do we have of getting him out of there in one piece?"

"Clint, he won't come back the same man. It's very rare that he let's anyone go. But when he does, they have already experienced the brunt of his anger."

"Who said anything about them _letting_ him go? We're called the Avengers for a reason."

A small smile tugged at Natasha's lips.

"I've gotten a few new arrow heads," Clint pulled out a small case and showed them to her. "And I've been aching to use them on something lately."

He pulled the string of an imaginary bow.

"Getting a little violent, are we?" she gave him a full smile now.

"Hey, I don't usually pull the sentimental card, but you guys are the only family I have. I'll do whatever I have to to protect you guys."

"I know. I would too."

"Now," he pulled out his phone. "Time to get the rest of the crew out here."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo 

Life really had a way of making Loki feel as terrible as possible.

As he said to Tony, he really didn't know how long he had been trapped in that cell. He used to keep track of the days by counting his plates of food. However, that proved to be faulty when he noticed that his feeding schedule was a bit sporadic. At least, it seemed to be sporadic. He had gotten to thirty before he decided to give up.

He pulled his blanket around his shoulders, his one comfort in this situation. When he was at home, no, not home, in Asgard, he could have whatever he wanted. Books, elegant clothes, anything he fancied. Now, what was he reduced to? Not a prince, but a child, clutching desperately to his blanket. He leaned his aching head against the wall and sighed. His entire body was sore and tired and the shaking would not stop.

Loki absent mindedly rubbed his thumb over one of the cuts on the inside of his arm. Smearing the bright colored blood over his pale skin. The entry point where his very life was being sucked out of him. It was amazingly small compared to the damage being done. He had never felt so ill before. If he didn't care so much about his image, he would have curled up and cried himself to sleep. Now wouldn't that be a sight? Him turning into a crumpled, sobbing mess on the floor. He would never hear the end of it if Tony saw. It would be even worse, if Innokenti was watching. The man loved it when he made his victims cry. Loki was determined not to be one of them. In fact, Loki decided to make sure that they knew he wouldn't be broken by directing a menacing, icy scowl at the camera. He wanted them to see exactly how he felt about them. One day he would escape. And on that day, he wanted them to remember his face from this moment.

Time passed slowly, as usual. By the time they did bring Stark back, Loki was, basically, a crumpled mess on the floor, minus the sobbing. The sound of the door opening startled him out of his misery. However, he didn't bother trying to get up. He just tried to fake sleep.

"Aw, look at you," the voice of that stupid 'caretaker' reached his ears. "Is the little prince sick?"

Loki could feel him grab onto the back of his shirt, pulling him up into a sitting position. The quick motion made him feel severely dizzy. He had to blink a few times to get the spots out of his eyes. The nameless fool just laughed at him.

"You're both a mess. Is this seriously all you can take?"

Loki saw Tony go to his corner in his peripheral vision. He was developing a black eye and had a busted lip. He did look a mess.

"I feel sorry for the people you're in charge of protecting," the man said to the miserable looking billionaire. "With you being so weak. And you," he turned to Loki. "I don't know how you thought you would become the ruler of anything."

Loki made up his mind that this guy would be the first one he would go after when he escaped.

"For someone so weak, it sure did take a lot of you to keep me down, the other day. The only reason Loki is still in here is because you somehow took his magic away. So what does that say about you?"

Loki smirked at his come back.

The man got right into Tony's face. "You're stuck here because you don't have your iron suit. Both of you need a crutch. Otherwise, you're nothing."

"Why does everyone seem to forget the genius part?"

The man straightened up. "You and your genius are still in a cage."

He left before Tony could give a rebuttal.

Tony turned to Loki. "The hospitality here is wonderful, isn't it?"

Loki rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Fools. That's all they are."

He could now get a good look at Tony. Besides the new bruises, there were tiny red dots covering various parts of him. Tony noticed his gaze.

"Needles," he said. "Not even normal ones. They had a substance on the tips that made it burn."

Loki cringed at the thought. The memory.

"Then, this," he gestured at his bloodied lip. "Because I 'talk too much'."

"Let me guess. I should 'see the other guy', right?"

Tony let out a bitter laugh. "No. I just wanted you to see what you took part in, that's all."

Loki blinked, confused. "Pardon?"

"Oh come on, you remember. You just sat there and watched while they took me away, knowing what was going to happen. Oh, and taunting me beforehand too. Yeah, you're a really classy guy, you know that?"

"Why on this earth would you expect me to protect you?"

"Oh, I don't expect you to pull a Superman or Captain America. I just wanted to see if you had an ounce of compassion in that skinny body of yours. A soul or something."

Loki laughed. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "After everything that happened, you really thought I had compassion for any of you humans? Are you mad?"

Tony just shook his head. "You really are pathetic."

"I am not the one who is pathetic. I have no reason to help you, Stark. I will take care of myself and myself only."

Then, at the worst time possible, a wave of pain hit Loki with such fury, he nearly passed out. He doubled over, clutching at his stomach, trying to catch his breath.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Tony said. "About you taking care of yourself? You're doing a great job of that, by the way."

"I...want you...to stay...silent," Loki said, baring his teeth, trying to wait out the agony.

"Nope. Sorry. See how it feels."

Loki dug his nails into the cloth of his shirt. Ok, it was subsiding a bit now, but still...it hadn't quite hurt like this before. His head was swimming. He didn't know how much more he could take.

On the other side of the cage, Tony watched, not exactly sure what to do. A part of him wanted Loki suffer like he did. Give him a taste of his own medicine. But, then there was that annoying feeling of guilt that really shouldn't have been there in the first place. He cursed while he crawled over beside Loki.

_Why should _I_ be the bigger man here? I mean, what's the point?_ he thought as he put his hand on Loki's back.

_I hate being good. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it._

"Hey, take it easy," he said, gently patting him. "Try to take deep breaths."

"That...isn't...exactly...helping."

"Well, it's not like there's a lot you can try."

Loki let out a small whimper.

"Look, just lie down or something."

He did what he was told, but not without giving Tony a look of disapproval first. He was getting tired of people telling him what to do.

"Now, what's hurting? Your stomach?"

"I would think...that would...be...obvious, Stark."

"Always the charmer," Tony moved Loki's hands and began to rub his stomach with his palm. "Now, is that helping?"

"Somewhat."

"Good. The sooner this goes away, the less I'll have to deal with you."

"You...started it."

"Did not."

Eventually, the pain became bearable. It wouldn't be completely gone for a few days, Loki knew from experience. But he could deal with this.

"Ok," Tony said, once Loki began to look like he was feeling a bit better. "Just so we're clear, if this ends up on Youtube," he pointed to the camera. "I will suit up and kill everyone here, including you. And we are never going to speak of this again. Got it?"

Loki rolled his eyes. "Trust me, Stark. You will not have to worry about that."

"Glad to hear it."

Tony crawled back to his corner, hoping to have some peace for the rest of the day. Loki pulled his blanket over himself and stayed where he was. Sometimes he would breathe unevenly or let out an unintentional whimper in his sleep. Tony would ask if he was okay only to be answered by a small "yes" or a soft snore. Loki never did bother to see if Tony was okay, despite him being in pain too. He was left to take care of himself. But that's what being the bigger man was about, he guessed. Iron Man took care of people, whether they appreciated it or not.

He couldn't help but think that Steve would be proud of him.

* * *

Here you go. Since I made you guys wait so long, I thought I'd give you an extra long chapter of back stories, Thor, and Tony and Loki bonding. Reluctantly, of course. Loki may be being a brat for now, but true to the summary, he's going to have to eventually return the favor. Well, I hope you stick around for the next chapter. I should be updating more regularly again, so no more waiting for almost two months this time.


	5. Chapter 5

Next chapter!

Thanks again for all the reviews, follows, and favorites. :)

Disclaimer: Nope, still not mine.

* * *

Steve pulled his starred and striped shirt over his head, tugging the wrinkles out at the bottom. He sat and replaced his shoes with bright red boots, one at a time. Everything was packed. Everything was set. In a few hours, they would be landing in Italy, ready to face a mission he'd hoped he'd never had to.

A soft knock came at the door. He stood, pulling his bag over his shoulder before saying, "Come in."

Bruce opened the door, poking his head in. "Are you ready Cap? We're leaving in a few minutes."

"Yeah. I'm coming."

He left the room and followed Bruce to the landing deck of Stark Tower. Pepper and Rhodey were waiting, ready to send them off. They all looked worn, having been up all night trying to figure out how this had happened. Pepper looked worse of all. Despair was written across her face and bloodshot eyes. It was hard feeling like you were losing your love. Steve knew that all too well.

"I have some of our guys over there leading a search party," Rhodey said. "This Innokenti and his group won't have a place to turn."

"Not with all of us after them," Steve said. He glanced back to Pepper. She gave him a small, forced smile, which disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

"Please be careful, you two," she said. "We don't want anyone else to go missing."

"We'll be fine, if the Other Guy has anything to say about it," Bruce said. "And so will Tony."

They all knew that the Hulk had somewhat of a soft spot for Tony. He was often the one to get Tony out of a rough spot during their battles.

"I know. It's just..." tears welled up in her eyes. "I'm so scared for him. Especially when Clint described that guy. He shouldn't have to go through this. Not again."

The three men tried to comfort her. It was hard, going through this. They knew.

"Don't worry Ms. Potts," Steve said, gently. "We'll get him out. He's going to be okay."

She sniffed, dabbing tears from her eyes. She nodded, trying to ease the fear that plagued her, but it held on with a vengeance.

"Good luck over there," Rhodey said. "We'll keep everything safe here."

"Thanks. Good luck to you too."

Steve shook his hand. Bruce did as well, before they left for the plane. It took off as soon as they sat down. Steve could see Rhodey leading Pepper back inside. He couldn't help but think of Peggy for a moment.

"Bruce," he said. "Did you ever find out what that project file was?"

"No. I'm still not the best with computer hacking. Someone had obviously been tampering with the computers earlier, but didn't quite get that far."

Steve looked thoughtful for a moment. "Because, you know, I was wondering how..."

"...How they knew what the file was in the first place? Yeah, I've been thinking about that all day. There has to be a mole somewhere."

"So, they already have people over here."

"Rhodey's covering it. So are some of the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents."

"What if it _is_ a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent?"

"I don't know. It would have had to be someone who Tony was working with, right? Fury and the others didn't even know this thing existed. They're going through his list of clients and will get back to us when they've found something."

Steve nodded. They'd been compromised. Theyd been compromised and they didn't even realize it. He felt so guilty that they didn't know until one of their own was in danger.

"Should we have left them alone?"

"Fury and Hill are going to be working directly with them. Whatever this thing is and whatever they're planning to use it for could probably do a lot of damage."

"I just hope we don't have another Manhattan incident."

The event that brought them together. The event that all but destroyed the city. The event that had scarred the people who had seen it first hand, themselves included.

That was the last thing they needed.

oooooooooooooooooo

Thor was beginning to think that his dream had been a premonition of sorts. He was barely into his search when Clint had called him, telling him that he was needed for a mission to save Tony from a group of terrorists in Europe. In some ways, he felt like he was still dreaming. He'd hoped he was. He often looked forward to charging into a battle, showing his enemies what it meant to be a true warrior. This time, he didn't feel that way. He had a bad feeling about everything that was going on. Something other than that filthy magic was in the air.

Thor had found these "Ghosts" rather odd, from what he had heard of them. What with their disappearing acts, leaving no trace behind. It sounded familiar to him. Too familiar and a little too close to home. S.H.I.E.L.D. thought they could handle this with two Avengers. They were apparently wrong.

He told Clint about the storm. About the magic. He asked him if he too thought it were possible that the two could somehow be linked. Because, to him, it sounded as though these terrorists had unlocked some sort of magic.

Or had a magical being help them. It pained him to think of who it might be. It had his brother's signature written all over it.

"I really don't know," Clint had answered. "The whole magic thing is more your field than mine. But you're right, it does make sense. Though I can't imagine why they would just create random storms in the middle of New Mexico."

"If it is who I think it is, I could imagine why."

Clint was quiet for a minute. "I'm hoping you're not talking about Loki."

"Aye, I wish I were not."

Clint cursed on the other line. "Well, this certainly makes things a hundred times worse."

"I will be there as soon as I can. However, I must take care of a few things first."

"Ok. See you in a couple of hours."

Thor had guessed that Jane and Darcy would have gone to Erik Selvig's house. He wasn't home at the time, but he had left his extra key for Jane if they ever needed to get in for any reason. When he landed in the front yard, he burst through the door, that slight anxiety, the remnants from earlier, slipping back into his psyche.

"Thor?" he heard, passing by the basement door. "Is that you?"

"Yes," he hurried down the stairs, taking her into his arms. "You're alright, are you not?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she chuckled a bit. "Don't I look fine?"

"Yes, you do," he smiled.

"Yeah, I'm fine too, if anyone hasn't forgotten about me," Darcy said.

"My apologies," Thor gave her a hug too. "I did not forget about you."

"So what happened?" Jane asked. "Did you figure out what that was?"

Thor's expression became solemn. "That is what I must speak with you about. There was magic contained within that storm. I do not believe that whoever is the cause of it has the well being of the people here in mind."

"What makes you say that?"

"Anthony Stark has been taken prisoner. I have good reason to believe that his captors are using magic as well and could be linked to what went on here."

Both Jane and Darcy grew pale.

"But worry not. I spoke with Barton and he assured me that those from the nearby S.H.I.E.L.D. base will keep careful watch over the area."

"Does this mean we're going to have to relocate again?" Darcy asked.

"Yes, it would be best. They are on their way now to take you to your new location."

"Ok," Jane said, looking a bit upset.

Thor noticed and began to feel concerned. "What worries you, darling? You will be safe. I made sure of it."

"It's not me I'm worried about."

"You fear for my safety?" a smile tugged at his lips. He laughed a little.

"Don't laugh! Of course I worry about you. That's what you do when the people you love are in danger."

"I know," he took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles like a gentleman. "But I will be careful."

"Yeah right. You're never careful!"

He smiled sheepishly. "I will try. For you." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips, which she happily returned.

"Now, I must go."

"Okay. Call me when you get there."

"I will."

He left the two girls to wait for the agents. As he flew into the sky, he saw them approaching the house. It made him feel better, but only a bit. Ever since the fight between he and Loki, when he said he would go after Jane, he had worried. He tried not to show it much, but he always made sure that Jane was in a safe place when he went off to fight. Thor wouldn't put it past his brother to try to follow through on his threat. He wasn't about to let those horrible dreams come true.

ooooooooooooooooooooo

When Loki woke from his fitful sleep, he was relieved at how much the pain had subsided. He was cautious, knowing better than to think it couldn't come back with a vengeance. Even so, he had found that rare comfortable position and didn't feel like moving. He needed something to do, feeling like he had gotten rather lazy. But lazy wasn't a terrible thing, he supposed. He deserved it after this mess he had been through.

He was turned in a way that allowed him to keep an eye on Tony. The man was really getting on his nerves. They were enemies. He didn't want Tony to care for him and vice versa. What was he trying to do? "Appeal to his humanity"? How dare he?

It was a mind game. It had to be.

Tony had awaken before Loki. His bruises didn't look any better. He just looked terrible in general. Sitting, propped against the wall, making shadow puppets on the floor, using the light from that thing attached to his chest.

Loki's gaze seemed to be caught by it. It always glowed, light blue.

What was it, anyway?

Whatever it was, it protected Tony from the Tesseract, keeping his mind from Loki's grasp. None of the other humans had one. At least, none that he knew of. It was odd. Now that Loki thought about it, he wished he had asked Barton about it. It was certainly intriguing.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," Tony said.

It startled Loki. Tony seemed to find that amusing, much to Loki's indignation.

"Didn't you learn that it's not polite to stare? I mean, I know I'm gorgeous and all, but at least try to be discrete."

"I find you rather repulsive," Loki retorted.

"Aww, looks like my baby is feeling better."

"You're not funny."

"Really? I think so."

Loki sighed in annoyance. He really didn't want to be dragged into a "snark off" with this man. He was too tired. Somehow, Tony had the ability to wear him out, just by talking to him.

"Or did I speak too soon?" Tony asked at Loki's sleepy expression.

"I am fine."

"Okay, whatever you say."

Loki closed his eyes, but sneakily cracked one open after a few minutes. Still trying to figure out that glowing bulb. Going through all the possibilities that he could think of. Since Tony wore it all the time, it must have been important. Though, knowing the man, it could be just for show. At any rate...

"I can see your eye, Lokes"

How did he do that?

"Come on, tell me. Why the sudden interest?"

Loki thought for a second. Why not just go ahead and ask?

"I was just curious as to what that light on your chest is."

"Curiosity killed the cat."

"What cat? I do not understand."

"Just an expression."

"You humans have odd expressions."

"That one's not so odd."

"Stop changing the subject. I really want to know what it is."

"It's a flashlight," Tony smiled, tapping it. Loki lifted an eyebrow.

"It protects your heart. It protected it from me."

"Yep, see I'm psychic. I saw you coming from a mile away and knew I needed something to keep me from falling into your control."

He looked so sincere while giving his explanation, Loki could have believed him. But he wasn't stupid.

"You cannot lie to me and expect me not to see right through it, Stark. Are you forgetting who I am?"

"The Wicked Witch of the West?"

"Can you not be serious for one moment?"

"Okay, okay. But just one. This thing in my chest and what it does is none of your business."

Oh, so it _was_ important. Lovely.

"Okay."

Tony looked confused. "Okay? That's it? I win?"

"Why yes, Stark," Loki smiled. "It appears that you do win."

That smile on Loki's face said differently. That was the kind of smile someone had when they had something else planned. Tony protectively put his hand over his arc reactor. The blue light that was cast on the floor disappeared.

"Why do you look so concerned?" Loki asked innocently. "I am weak, powerless, sick. You should have no reason to fear me."

"Yeah? When was the last time you've ever admitted to being weak?"

Loki chuckled. "It is a rather hard thing to admit. But I know my limits."

Then why did Tony feel like he was suddenly becoming prey?

"That's...good," Tony slightly turned away from him, bringing his knees up to his chest.

Loki let out a big, showy yawn, before bringing the edge of the blanket over his face so only his eyes were visible. Tony could feel a chill go up his spine.

After they were fed their meals, they both fell asleep (because really, what else was there to do?). But Loki didn't stay asleep for long. He watched Tony until he was sure the man was in a deep slumber. He slowly, quietly got up, wincing against stiff joints, and stealthily walked to the other side of the cage. Tony was curled up, defensive, even in sleep. Loki tried to figure out the best way to go about this. He didn't want Tony to wake up. He knelt beside him, gently taking his wrists and moving his arms away. The blue light shone in his eyes. Loki slowly reached out, pressing his fingers against it. Underneath Tony's shirt, it still let off a warmth. Loki ran his fingers around the edge of it, detecting that it was a source of energy. Interesting.

He could feel a somewhat tingling sensation in the tips of his fingers. It was as if his body were trying to absorb some of the energy. Or, that the energy was just attracted by him. A crease developed in Loki's forehead as he tried to understand.

It felt like it was trying to pull his magic from him.

Okay, well perhaps he should try giving it a little. He closed his eyes, concentrating, preparing himself, because he knew he would pay for this later. He conjured up the small amount of magic that had replenished itself. The golden energy glowed at his finger tips and he sent it into the arc reactor.

What happened next was a bit of a whirlwind. Blue was transformed into a greenish hue. The energy increased many times over, sending a wild spark through both of them.

Loki snatched his hand away and Tony woke up with a yelp, trying to back away. He saw Loki, sitting there with his hand frozen in the air and the most startled expression he had ever seen on the man. He looked down at his arc reactor. The green hue was still there, but was fading out. Then he looked back at Loki.

"What did you DO?" Tony yelled, clutching his chest. "Tell me right now, what did you do?!"

Loki seemed to have lost his ability to speak, still staring at him with that shocked expression.

That was it. Tony got up, despite every ache in his body and snatched Loki by the collar of his shirt.

"You better talk to me now!"

Loki didn't fight back. He looked at his hands, then back to Tony.

He smiled.

"Your own energy source. Stark, do you realize that..."

The door crashed open. Both Tony and Loki looked up, seeing Innokenti and a few others standing there with only the bars of the cage between them.

None of them looked happy.

* * *

Uh, oh. Looks like Loki's going to be in big trouble. :(

Next up, the team will finally be together so they can start looking for Tony. Also, when it comes to Tony and Loki, things in the next chapter are going to be rough, to put it lightly. You've been warned.


	6. Chapter 6

Next chapter! Okay, let's get this started. Whump, whump, and more whump.

Disclaimer: I don't own them. Marvel does.

* * *

Thor was the first to arrive, being able to fly through the sky faster than any human plane. Though Bruce and Steve weren't far behind, having a good head start on him. They sat across Tony's room, Thor and Natasha on the bed, Steve and Bruce on chairs. Everyone except Clint, who was pacing back and forth in front of the window. He'd been anxious ever since his phone call with Thor. Natasha, perceptive as always, figured out why in a matter of minutes. She knew who could get that kind of reaction out of him.

"Clint," she called. "Come and sit with the rest of us. It's easier to talk when you're not back there."

"I'm fine," he chewed off a hangnail, staring out the window.

"Clint," her voice was firmer this time.

He gave in, shoving his hands in his pockets while sauntering over to the group. He sat beside her, close enough that she could feel the tension in his body. She patted his shoulder.

"So, Loki's loose again," she said, directed toward Thor. "I would think you guys would be better at keeping tabs on your prisoners."

"Loki?" Bruce said. "Wait a minute, he's behind all of this?"

"Do not insult my people," Thor growled at Natasha.

"Then keep your brother on a better leash," she growled back.

"Guys, guys, calm down," Steve said. "Now, what is this about Loki escaping?"

"As I have told Barton, there is a possibility that a master of magic may be helping these humans."

"When did the people in Asgard tell you that Loki escaped?"

"Well...they didn't, exactly"

"Then what makes you think it's Loki?" Bruce asked.

Thor rubbed the back of his neck, feeling flustered. "I know him well. I've seen him train, I've seen him in battle. I can feel that it is him."

"So, we're going on a feeling instead of hard evidence?" Clint asked.

"You do not understand. I do not mean a gut feeling. I can sense him. His magic has a certain signature and when he uses it, I can tell that it is him."

"Oh, I get it," Bruce said. "It's unique to him, like DNA or a fingerprint."

"Yes."

"I don't," Clint said. "I thought magic was spells and stuff. You're talking like it's something that's already a part of him."

"It is. What humans call magic and what we call magic are somewhat different things."

"But how did he escape? And why did no one tell you about it?" Steve asked.

"I do not know. This entire situation is rather odd."

"Then, don't you think you should tell them?" Clint said.

Thor was getting a bit fidgety, avoiding eye contact with him. "I can take care of this myself," he said quietly.

"All I'm saying is, a guy as crazy as Loki escapes prison, it might be a good idea to tell them."

"Clint's right, Thor," Steve said. "You saw what happened the last time he was here. And couldn't you get in trouble for knowing that he's here and not telling anyone?"

"We have a gate keeper, Heimdall, who can see everything that goes on in the realms. He has not spoken of it. Perhaps they would rather me be the one to deal with this," Thor said, quietly trailing off and not sounding very confident in what he was saying.

_I know of passages between the realms which even Heimdall cannot see._

The others didn't seem to have too much confidence in what he was saying either.

It was moments like this that Thor wished that he had more prowess in the spoken word. He wasn't a good liar. He was truthful when he told them that he had learned how to track Loki, something that was difficult and could only be picked up after spending years with him. But he wasn't sure that _anyone_ could see that Loki was here. He could have a double of himself in his cell for all he knew. If it was known that Loki had tricked them and had escaped, his punishment would be much worse. And even though Thor believed that Loki should be punished, the protective older brother in him protested at the thought of it being too severe.

They wouldn't understand. He felt like a traitor and he was sure they would see him as such.

"If you honestly believe that," Steve said in the tone of a father who could sense his child wasn't being honest and was giving him one last chance to tell him the truth. "You'll track him down for us, won't you?"

"Yes, of course."

"Ok, then. I trust you."

_Can I trust you?_

Thor nodded. _I would give my life for all of you. But you must understand that I would give my life for him as well._

"We need to make this an undercover mission," Natasha said. "Infiltrate them and take them down from the inside. Innokenti works for hire, so we could contact him that way. Or even better, pretend to join their cause. We'll need one other person to go with Thor. Do you think you can do that Steve?"

"Sure."

"Alright. I'll need to give you all the information I know about him. It's not much, but it's a start."

"Right. We'll be able to go out into the field before the day is over, won't we?"

"Yes. The sooner we get this done, the better."

ooooooooooooooooo

Tony didn't like the looks he was getting from the group in front of them. The last thing he needed was another reason to get a beating from these people.

The other thing he didn't like was that glimmer of fear in Loki's eyes. This, from the man who mouthed off at the Hulk. That wasn't good.

"Now, see what you did?" Tony hissed at him. "I told you to leave it alone, but you just couldn't do that, could you?"

"You should have just told me what it was," Loki said.

"This is your argument?"

They were interrupted by the loud clanging of metal when their cell door was practically thrown open. Innokenti stepped in front of them, tall and menacing.

"What was _that_?" he slowly asked, anger boiling under his voice.

Tony opened his mouth to answer, but no words came. Wasn't that just great.

"One of you had better tell me what that was, now."

Loki swallowed his fear, straightening up a bit. Tony hoped that he had a good answer, because he really wanted to hear it.

"A bit of an unfortunate mishap," he said. "No harm done. Nothing you should worry about."

"Do I look stupid to you?"

Loki was trying to play this carefully, but he couldn't help but crack a grin. Did he look stupid? Well, it was obvious what Loki's opinion on that was. Tony, feeling the same way, was contagious to Loki's cheeky smile.

Innokenti punched the wall, making them both jump.

"I am so tired of both of you!" he reached to grab Loki.

Only to find his hand going straight through him.

"So sorry," Loki said, standing behind them all. "But I do believe it's time for me to go."

Tony's jaw dropped.

Loki was free?

Or worse, Loki was going to leave him behind?

"Wait!" he tried to get up and follow him, only to be held back by some of the others. "Loki, wait!"

Loki hesitated for the briefest of moments. Tony would slow him down, but that light in his chest gave him some of his magic back.

In the end, he would probably regret not taking him along. Better to have that power for himself.

He ran back, making himself transparent so he could get through the crowd.

But of course he had to solidify to grab Tony.

He was right there, nearly had him.

When he was thrown backward.

He hit the back of his head on the wall. It stunned him for a second. He could feel the blood in his hair.

When he opened his eyes, he could see Innokenti walking toward him. He took what looked like a small gun out of his pocket. A stun gun that they had been working on. He knew it because they had used him to test it on.

He didn't have much time to do this.

He used what power he had left to multiply himself. He and his multiples ran all over the room, trying to confuse them. It was working. Innokenti and some of his employees tried to shoot him, but missed every time. Loki gathered his multiples together, running at Innokenti and knocking him over. Loki became one person again before grabbing Tony by the wrist, pulling him from the rest of them, and making a dash toward the door. Maybe this would work. Maybe they could finally get out of there.

But it wasn't that easy. Of course it wouldn't be that easy.

Loki felt a sharp pang in his back before he fell to his knees. One of the assistants had shot him, rendering him practically immobile. Tony tried to help him up, but it was useless.

Innokenti grabbed Loki by the hair, pushing him to the ground. Tony tried to go after him, but was attacked by some of the others. Innokenti put his hand around Loki's throat. Loki tried to get away, snarling and clawing at Innokenti's arms, but his strength had left him.

Tony was able to pull one of his arms free. In a split second, he grabbed a gun from an unsuspecting henchman, hitting a hand that was holding on to him with it. He twisted around and shot another with it.

Innokenti didn't let up. The claw marks on his arms didn't even seem to affect him. Loki was being driven into a full panic, now. His eyes were wild with it. His growling turned into painful coughs as he tried to breathe.

"Let him go!" Tony yelled, pointing his gun at Innokenti.

He looked up with disbelief at Tony's demands, but didn't let go. The others, however, turned to him, guns out. Tony didn't give in.

"You shoot me, I shoot him. It's that simple. You need your boss, don't you? Don't want him to end up like that guy over there," Tony nodded at the person he had shot, who was still unable to move. Obviously the effects were worse for humans.

Innokenti smiled. Loki's hands were gripped tightly to Innokenti's wrists. His face was red and he was close to passing out.

Then, Innokenti let him go. The others ran at Tony, knocking the gun out of his hand and pinning him.

He could see Loki still laying on the floor. He was rubbing his throat, relieved to be able to breathe again.

But blood was everywhere.

_Come on, Loki. Get up. Please get up and get us out of this mess._

But it didn't look like they would see their freedom today.

Or ever again.

Innokenti stood. He grabbed Loki by the foot and dragged him back to the cage. The others were about to do the same to Tony.

"No! Leave him out," Innokenti yelled at them. Then he pointed to one of them near the back. "You. I think it's time we silence this one."

Tony tried to get up. He felt like he had to stop this. He was afraid of what that man would come back with.

Despite everything that happened, he really didn't want to watch them torture Loki to death. He didn't know if he could handle that.

"You must be really proud of yourself," Innokenti said to Loki. "Almost getting out. I'll admit I'm impressed. But you'd better give me one good reason why I shouldn't beat you senseless."

"You already know why you can't," Loki said, his voice quiet and rough.

"No, she said I couldn't kill you. That leaves me a lot of room to be creative. I might be reasonable if you beg."

Loki wasn't one to beg. Maybe he should have reconsidered it, but he was tired.

So sick and so tired of being thrown around, disrespected, abused.

He looked Innokenti square in the eye, mustering up as much defiance as he could before he spit in his face.

That earned him a punch in the jaw. Yeah, it hurt. A lot. But that was better than begging. Or, it was to him at any rate.

"You'll pay for that later."

Later? Was he not paying for it now?

The man that Innokenti had sent on an errand had returned. In his hands were tongs, holding a piece of hot coal.

Tony sucked in a breath. No. This was getting too familiar.

He walked across the room, handing it to Innokenti.

"One more chance," Innokenti said.

Loki smirked. "You should know me by now."

Tony couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was he insane?

Innokenti pried Loki's mouth open. Not without struggle. He held him, holding Loki's mouth open while he tried to squirm away.

Then he placed the hot coal on Loki's tongue.

He forced his jaw shut. Loki tried to spit it out, tried to get away from his cruel hands, but he couldn't. He cried out in pain. His mouth burned, adding to every other hurt that had been inflicted on him before. They waited and waited until they decided that he'd had enough.

He spit it onto the floor, shaking and panting. Innokenti smiled at him again.

"You'll never learn, will you? I shouldn't have to keep doing things like this to you, but you just keep forcing me to."

Loki didn't say anything. He couldn't. He couldn't even think straight.

Tony felt sick. Sick and panic wasn't a good combination. What were they going to do to _him_? Images of Yinsen lying dead kept appearing at the edges of his mind. He couldn't let himself have a panic attack right here in front of them. He just couldn't.

Innokenti told them to take Tony back to that room. That awful room. He didn't think he could handle that right now. He wanted to beg them to let him go home. To let him go back to his family, to New York traffic, to his lab, to cheese burgers, to his Pepper. He didn't care what it took. He would give them E92. He would give almost anything at this point.

Innokenti left to get the injured taken care of. They would leave him to his thoughts, which were sometimes almost as bad as the actual torture.

They had been so close to getting out of there.

So close.

* * *

Loki, I like your ferocity, but you're just getting yourself into unnecessary trouble.

Oh and kudos to Potkanka and Margaret for figuring out that Loki could recharge and escape using the arc reactor.

I was having a hard time explaining how Loki could have gotten out without being noticed at first. This was originally going to be a semi sequel to my other story Hurricane (in which he already escaped) but that changed and that was the part that I had accidentally left out until now. Oops.

But Thor, aww, I just love writing a conflicted Thor. He just loves them all so much, he doesn't know what to do. :(

Just wait until he finds out what they've been doing to Tony and Loki. That's going to be fun to write.


	7. Chapter 7

Hey guys. I'm sorry again for waiting so long to update. I have no excuse except for lack of creativity and laziness. I must do better!

Thanks for the follows and reviews.

Disclaimer: Marvel owned.

* * *

They had started later than they hoped to. It was nightfall by the time Thor and Steve had left the hotel. They wanted to make sure all bases were covered. And of course, there was that pesky problem of being known by anyone who had access to any form of media. Their disguises, that's what had taken the longest. Neither had their golden hair any more. Thor had gone as a clean shaven brunette, while Steve was a red head with glasses. They hoped that would be enough. It must have been, considering they hadn't been stopped by anyone.

The other three were still in the hotel, having moved to Natasha's room. She had her ear piece ready for whenever they needed to communicate with her. She was sitting at the kitchen table, nervously tapping her fingers on the surface. Clint quietly walked into the room, taking a beer out of the refrigerator.

"Hey," she said. "Toss me one?"

He did. She caught right before it had the chance to fall to the floor.

"Getting rusty, are we?" he smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes.

"I caught it, didn't I?"

"I suppose you did," Clint sat down across from her.

"Where is Bruce?"

"In the back. Trying to research some more about this guy."

"Any luck?"

"No, not yet."

She popped the tab on her beer and took a sip before speaking up again.

"Clint, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. What makes you think something is wrong?"

"I can tell."

"I'm fine. I told you that already."

She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms. "Don't lie to me. You're still worried about Loki? Or is it something else, too?"

"Well..." he paused, trying to find the right words. "At the risk of sounding petty during an emergency situation, why did you pick Steve instead of me?"

That caught Natasha by surprise.

"Don't get me wrong. It's not that I don't think he can do it," he continued. "It's just, I've been doing undercover work for years. It's what I'm good at."

"Clint..."

"I just want to know if you think I can't do my job or something anymore. Loki messed me up a bit, yeah, but I'm not broken. I'm _not_. I could find Tony, Natasha, I know I could."

Natasha sighed. This was always such a touchy subject.

"Clint, I know you're not broken. We all have our wounds, but yours still seem a bit fresh."

"It's been three years!" Clint scoffed. "Do you honestly think that I'm the only one who's apprehensive about Loki being back?"

"No. But you were being the most obvious about it."

"I can't believe this," he muttered, getting up from his seat.

"Don't go just yet," she grabbed his arm. "I of all people know that you are great at what you do. But when you talked to Thor earlier, I saw a side of you that I haven't seen since the months after Loki took control of you."

"Let go of me."

She hesitated. Clint softened his eyes and looked straight at her. "Please?"

Natasha supposed she had no choice. She let him go. He walked away from her and went into the bedroom.

She hated this. She didn't want to make Clint feel like she didn't trust in his abilities anymore, but she had to make the right choice. A situation as delicate as this had no room for mistakes.

"Natasha?" she heard Steve's voice through her earpiece. "Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, I can hear you," Natasha said. "How's it going?"

"Pretty good. We have a trail, though it's kind of weak."

That was good. "Okay. Keep me posted."

Steve followed Thor through the streets, picking trails like a hunting dog, walking for a while, pausing unassuredly, then roaming off in a different direction. Steve was beginning to think this would take a lot longer than he'd originally hoped. Even more so when Thor sighed in frustration.

"What is it?" Steve asked.

"Nothing. It's just a little hard to follow."

That was obvious.

As Steve had told Natasha, the signal was weak, though consistent. Loki's magic usually gave out strong bursts of energy, then left behind little traces as it dissipated into the air.

_What are you up to, Loki?_

"I'm guessing he wants to lay low this time," Steve said to fill the silence. "Sort of."

"I suppose so," Thor said. Steve could hear a bit of resentment in his voice. "I was hoping this would not happen again. That maybe some time in prison would put things in perspective for him. When I was banished here, I learned my lesson."

"Yeah, but spending time alone might have just given him time to think on things that made him angrier."

"Perhaps. But what are we supposed to do? It took quite a lot of convincing to get his punishment as it was."

"So, prison was your idea."

Thor nodded.

"He would have had to experience a great deal of physical pain otherwise. Maybe it _would_ have been best, but I just felt that it would make things worse. Loki is the type of man who will remember every wrong done to him and will use it against you. I believe if his punishment were harsh, he would have seen it as an excuse to do more harm."

"That makes sense."

"They would not be so lenient this time."

_Unless I'm careful._

They took a turn down a lonely street. All of it's inhabitants asleep in their homes.

"I feel as though I must apologize to you," Thor continued. "For what has happened."

"You didn't do anything."

"Exactly. I did nothing but stand idly by while my brother slipped into madness. I could have prevented this from happening."

"_Maybe_ you could have helped him. But in the end, everyone is responsible for their own actions."

Thor didn't answer. He could have agreed, but he was still feeling guilt. He was the same way after the Manhattan attack. He felt it was as much his fault as Loki himself and nothing would convince him otherwise. It was unhealthy, really.

They continued their journey, wandering through the streets of Rome. For how long, they didn't know. But then, Thor stopped cold, looking back and forth as if waiting for cars to pass, though there were none. Steve waited for an explanation. Maybe the trail had ended.

"The signature is coming from two different directions," Thor said.

Now it was Steve's turn to look up and down the street.

"What does that mean?"

"I honestly do not know."

Another problem.

"Which way should we try first?"

Thor was unsure. There was really nothing that made one direction more desirable than the other.

"Let us try this way first," he said, starting to his left. Steve followed.

They were mostly silent as they walked down the road. Thor was putting his utmost concentration on the trail.

"We're getting close," he said. Steve felt both relief and the pre battle nerves at once.

_Don't worry, Tony. We're coming. We'll get you out of there soon._

Then, Thor stopped.

"This is it."

"Are you sure?" Steve asked.

Because if he was, they were in a lot more trouble than he originally thought.

"I am positive," Thor said as they faced Adessi International.

ooooooooooooooooooo

The door creaked open after what seemed to be hours of waiting. Tony lifted his head to see Innokenti and a few others walk into the room. Not as many as usual. What was it? Was the guy getting cocky? Feeling as though he were breaking him?

Time had eased Tony's panic attack, somewhat. While still feeling jittery, he felt like he was less likely to spill his secrets. Less likely wasn't as good as impossible, but it was probably as good as he was going to get by this time.

"You know, I asked you a question earlier that I still didn't get an answer to," Innokenti said. He reached down and tapped Tony's arc reactor. "What happened? And what is this?"

Tony hesitated. He needed to give them something believable. Something that would keep them at bay.

"Still going to stay silent on the matter, are you?" Innokenti said. He grabbed Tony by the chin, forcing him to have eye contact. "Maybe I should try convincing you?"

"Look, I don't know what Loki did to me in there," Tony answered. "I don't think he even fully understood what he did."

"Do you really expect me to believe that?"

"What do you want me to say? I don't know what happened. I was asleep."

"You could have been faking. Trying to fool me."

"I wasn't. We weren't. It wasn't a trick, it was an accident."

"Either way, I still don't know what it is. Care to enlighten me, Mr. Stark?"

No.

"It's just something I've been experimenting with."

"You're being very vague. I don't like your answer."

"It's nothing."

"It's nothing? If it was nothing, it wouldn't have multiplied Loki's power! Tell me what it is right now!"

_Come on, give him an answer. It doesn't matter, just say a couple of big words, he won't know the difference!_

Innokenti let go of his chin.

"Fine. You want to be stubborn? Go ahead," he took a screw driver from the cart. "I'll just have to remove it and figure out what it is myself."

Tony's face paled.

"You can't!"

"Oh, I can't? You're tied up and don't want to give me an answer. I think I can."

Tony wanted to punch something in all his anger. Pull his hair. Curse all of them out.

"It's keeping me alive! You need me alive, don't you? You take it out and I'm a dead man."

Innokenti raised an eyebrow in interest. His employees exchanged looks of surprise for some, disbelief for others.

"How?"

How, he says. Could he not just leave it alone?

"When I was in Afghanistan, a bomb went off and some of the shrapnel hit me in the chest. My arc reactor is what's keeping it from killing me."

"It's something more than that," Innokenti inched closer to him with that screwdriver.

"It's a battery of sorts too," Tony frantically said. "It powers my suit. I guess that's how Loki did what he did."

Innokenti smiled. He finally got his answer. Tony felt a sense of dread, knowing that this was going to be used against him.

"This must be the same technology that Stark Industries uses for it's energy projects. Am I correct?"

Tony's silence was all he needed to hear.

"Now, Mr. Stark, was that so hard?"

Yes it was. Tony could honestly say that he hated himself at that moment. Giving away everything like that. He should have just let them kill him.

"This was a little easier than I thought. Maybe I _could_ just get you to tell me where E92 is."

He went back to the cart and replaced the screw driver with a whip. One that had some intimidating prongs at the end. Like rose thorns.

"But this way is much more fun."

Tony braced himself. One of the others yanked his shirt up, exposing his stomach. He bit down on his trembling lip, squeezing his eyes shut when Innokenti lifted the whip.

It ripped into the soft flesh of his belly. Tony yelped at it's sting. It again made contact. He could practically see the whelps developing in his mind. He could feel blood trickling down from the wounds. Pretty soon he was pleading for him to stop, demanding him to let him go, promising the dire consequences if he were ever freed. Innokenti, however, continued. Enjoying Tony's pain. Loving the fact that he could bring out the worst in him. A hero made victim. It was something that brought the man joy.

It was sickening.

It was when he no longer felt addition to his pain, that Tony could bring himself to open his eyes. They were drawn to his belly, red with whelps and cuts. The cuts themselves were not deep, thankfully, so there was no significant injuries. It just hurt. Badly.

"A little extra today," Innokenti said. "Just so you'll know to stay in line."

One of the others pulled Tony's shirt back over his body. He whimpered slightly when the cloth rubbed against his tender stomach.

"Did you learn your lesson, Mr. Stark?" Innokenti asked.

Tony slowly nodded his head.

"Good. Now you can rest."

They untied Tony, taking him back to the cage. The blood already stained his shirt, brilliantly bright against the white cloth. He landed on his knees when they pushed him into his little home. More bruises. More pain.

Loki watched with an unreadable expression. Tony was actually surprised to see him still there. Maybe this was the only cage they had.

Tony laid down, curling into himself with his arms pressed against his stomach, trying to stop the bleeding and force the pain away. It wasn't working. He tried every position he could think of until he finally decided to lay flat on his back with his shirt lifted up, slightly, so the cloth wouldn't rub against his injuries. He tried to breathe slowly and evenly. Even the smallest movements increased the pain.

"Are ooo oh ay," Tony heard a small voice say.

He looked over at Loki. It was the first time he noticed that he was wearing what looked like a collar, except it was made of metal. He wondered what it was, but didn't bother to ask.

"What?" he said.

"Are ooo oh ay?" Loki repeated.

Tony couldn't understand what he was trying to say or why he was talking so strangely. Oh yeah, his tongue had been scorched. How could he forget that? Stressed mind, he supposed.

"Sorry, but I still can't understand what you're saying."

Loki just waved his hand in a 'never mind' gesture.

Then it dawned on Tony that he was asking if he was okay.

He almost smiled. Could it be that the ice man _did_ have a heart? Or was he just trying to pull him into another trick. The latter was most likely, but the thought that the man cared enough to ask still softened Tony a little.

It was amazing how valuable comfort could be.

"Are you asking if I'm okay?"

Loki looked a little embarrassed. He needed Tony healthy if he wanted to escape. He didn't want him to get the wrong idea.

But he nodded anyway.

"I'm as okay as I can be in this state," Tony said. "But thanks for asking."

Loki shrugged. He must not have been succeeding in not letting Tony think that he cared about him just for the sake of caring. The thought annoyed him, but didn't anger him like he expected. He supposed he was okay with it as long as it got him what he needed in the end.

* * *

Annnd the plot thickens!

Next chapter, will Natasha be able to make Clint feel like he's still important to the team? Will Bruce find out more about Innokenti? What's going on at Adessi? What is that thing around Loki's neck? And when will he stop being so stubborn and love Tony like he deserves to be loved (but of course not _that_ kind of love because then it would be a slash fic!)? Because everyone must love Tony. Everyone! But he has a lot of chapters left to decide if he will or not. Oh well.


	8. Chapter 8

Okay, if you guys aren't ready to kill me yet, here is the next chapter. Two changes, though. One, this is the length that I'll probably be sticking to now. Two, after today, I'll be updating every other Friday. And thank you all for the reviews and follows. :) I appreciate you sticking with me.

* * *

There should be a limit to how many things could go wrong at once. There really should.

Natasha rushed into the bedroom where Clint and Bruce were. They both looked up, Clint, from his spot on the bed and Bruce from the desk where he was working on the computer. They could immediately tell that something was wrong.

"Bad news," she said. "Loki's signature is split two ways. One of them leads to Adessi."

They both sat straight up.

"Isn't that...?" Bruce asked.

"Yes."

"Wait a minute," Clint said. "His signature is split two ways? How is he pulling _that_ off?"

"I don't know."

"He could be making duplicates of himself," Bruce offered. "Though I'm guessing they haven't found him yet."

Natasha shook her head, confirming his statement.

Clint rubbed his forehead in frustration. "I hate magic," he muttered.

"You sound like Tony," Bruce chuckled before turning back to the computer. This Innokenti was a hard man to find.

"First Tony, now Mia could be in trouble again," Natasha said.

"This might be easier if Loki wasn't involved," Clint said, sounding absolutely bitter. "What if he's just sending everyone on a wild goose chase? Seems like the sort of thing he'd do."

Natasha couldn't answer that. It was possible. Anything was at this point.

Natasha set her jaw, determination coursing through her. Loki may have been a few steps ahead of them, but that didn't mean they couldn't be proactive. Natasha wasn't going to let a mission fail without her trying to prevent it. They may have taken Tony, but she wasn't about to let them have Mia too.

"Bruce, I need you to do something for me."

"Sure," he turned in his chair.

Natasha immediately got up and grabbed a sheet of scratch paper from the desk and a pen. She quickly began to scribble something down.

"I need you to take care of Mia for me, okay? We have a safe house set up for her in case of an emergency. You need to get her there," she handed him the piece of paper. "We have an unmarked S.H.I.E.L.D. car in the parking garage. The parking space has the same number as the room. This is her address. She will tell you how to get to the house."

Bruce promptly took the paper from her hand. He skimmed over it.

"We won't have to worry about Loki getting her as long as the Other Guy is around. I'm sure he remembers him very well."

Bruce smiled. "I'm sure he does."

He stood from his seat and walked in the direction of the door. "Anything else I need to know before I go?"

"Her bodyguard is with her. And, just a bit of a warning, she's very frantic sometimes."

"I wouldn't doubt it. With this mess and everything."

"Take an earpiece with you. Keep me updated."

"I will."

He left the room. Natasha turned to Clint.

"You're more than welcome to help me with this," she sat in front of the computer, scooting the chair a bit closer. "Two heads are better than one. Isn't that the saying?"

Clint chuckled behind her.

"Yes ma'am."

oooooooooooooooooooooo

There was growing tension in Thor's shoulders. It had been at least an hour since Steve had last talked to Natasha. There was still no progress being made. So, to say he was frustrated was an understatement.

The levels were just that. Level. For someone who was leaving their "scent" all over the place, Loki was playing a good disappearing act. He could be hiding in the walls laughing at them, for all he knew. The man could have already compromised the mission. He could have compromised them before they even started.

Again, frustration? Understatement.

"Hey Thor," Steve said.

"Hmm?"

"Does Loki know you can track him?"

"No, I never told him," Thor broke into a sly grin. "A little trick of my own."

Steve smiled at that.

"So, what's going on, here? He has to be somewhere."

"Yes. He most certainly is _somewhere_."

Steve stopped in the middle of the hall.

"Ok, I think we can both agree that this isn't working."

Thor was the next to stop. He turned, giving the Captain his full attention.

"Well, what do you propose we do?"

Steve ran a had through his hair.

"Well, we need to think outside the box. You know, get inside his mind."

"That is no easy task. Loki thrives on chaos. You think you have a grasp on what he is trying to accomplish, then he takes you by surprise."

Truer words could not be said. Unstable and unpredictable. That's what Loki was. Okay, fair enough. What was the most unpredictable thing that could happen at this very moment? Shape shifting into a trusted employee? Invisibility? Controlling a large amount of people to do his bidding? But no, he'd done that before. Unless he wanted to be predictable in order to throw them off.

Steve leaned against the wall, letting his head fall back. There were too many variables.

"If only we knew what his exact plan was."

"Yes. That would make this much simpler. But it would only be possible if we find him."

Back to square one.

"Looks like the only way we'll be able to move forward is if you track down the other signature. I can stay here to see what I can find."

"But you cannot sense him and you do not have the greatest defense against him."

One gun against a man who had bullet proof skin. His shield was left behind, due to the secretive nature of what they were doing. Who had a patriotic shield besides Captain America? And Thor was right about not being able to sense him. He was basically going in blindfolded with his hands tied behind his back.

"I'll be fine. I couldn't sense him the first time we met and I think I gave him a run for his money. Besides, I don't feel comfortable leaving these people alone, when Loki could be lurking around the corner."

Thor nodded. He had to admit, this was the best way to go by this point.

"Alright. I suppose that is what we must do."

Thor started to walk away. But before he went on his way, he added, "Be wary of everyone, Captain. He may be posing as another. Keep your eyes open and watch your back. Loki is a sneaky fighter."

"I know. And I will."

Thor gave him a small smile of encouragement before he left.

It took a minute for Steve to get started again. He made a mental checklist of where they had been and where he now needed to go.

He faced the white hall. The sound of the buzzing over head lights bounced off of the walls.

He realized how very alone he was.

Okay.

One deep breath.

Now, it was time to go.

The clacking of his feet hitting tile accompanied him as he searched. He looked for any abnormalities. Was that an extra shadow on the wall? A second set of footsteps? Or was his mind playing tricks on him? Because every time he turned around, there was nothing.

Every once in a while, he would pass a guard or a late night worker. He would try to study them without being obvious. But how does one even tell the difference between a shape shifter and the real thing? All this time and he still didn't know the answer to that.

He hoped Thor was having better luck than he was. He was slowly getting nowhere.

But nowhere had a door at the end of the hall.

The door lead to a stairway of three floors, where he was in the middle. Though, whether Loki would be on the top or bottom floor was a toss up. Steve decided to go with the basement.

The ceilings were higher than they were upstairs. The hall was lined with large, heavy looking doors, complete with the hum of whatever machinery was behind them. It was unlike any power company he had ever been to. Not that he made a habit of taking field trips to them or anything. But, from what he was seeing, it was abnormally small. Small, dark, and quiet. It felt more like a hospital than anything. Steve checked one of the massive doors, only to find it locked. It wasn't the only one, he soon discovered. That must have been where they processed everything. Or whatever it was they did. He didn't exactly know how their stuff worked.

Though, the farther he went, he began to realize that no one else was down there. In fact, he was getting a bad vibe from the place. He couldn't explain why, but he wanted to hurry up so he could get back upstairs.

He continued wandering. Continued mentally dissecting everything. Continued thinking that he wasn't going to find anything.

But that's when his eye caught something.

There wasn't anything strange about the light that shone under the door that was a couple of feet ahead of him. No, it was what was next to it. Right above the floor on the door frame was a rust colored stain. As Steve stepped forward, it became recognizable. He'd seen enough carnage to know blood, when he saw it.

He bit his lip, feeling a sense of foreboding as he looked from the dried blood to the light underneath the door. He eased his hand toward the handle of his gun.

Just in case.

Just in case.

He had no idea what he would find.

He was not looking forward to it, either.

But he knocked on the door anyway.

The sound echoed around him.

The door eased open.

A short man was behind the door. Peeking through the small space between it and its frame.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Uh, yes. I am working for S.H.I.E.L.D.," Steve flashed a badge that Natasha had given him. "We've been alerted of a new terrorist threat. We are doing a sweep of the building, so if you don't mind, I need to do a quick search of this room."

The man looked unsure, peering over his shoulder before submitting and opening the door.

"Sure, come in."

Steve stepped into the room and found himself a little surprised. The room, like the rest of the building, was white and clinical. But it resembled a nurse's office. Actually, he was beginning to think it _was_ a nurse's office. With a few chairs along the wall and a little side room with a large open window to give whoever was inside access to anyone in the waiting area. But, to his left was another room with the door slightly ajar. There looked like there was a bed inside. Was that a machine next to it? Someone was in there with a white lab coat draped over his body.

"So, you have a medical room here," Steve said, while searching the windowed room. "That's nice."

"Yes. In case of an emergency,' the man said.

"I see," he tried to get a better look at the machine while opening a drawer. "Do you mind if I take a look?"

"No, you can't go in there."

Steve felt a little bit surprised at the anxiety on the man's face.

"I'm sure you understand that this is an emergency."

"What is going on?" the person that was in the room stepped out, taking a look at the other worker, then turning to Steve. "May I ask who you are?"

"I am a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. We are doing an emergency search of the building because of a security threat."

The man shook his head. "Can't even feel safe anymore."

"I am sincerely sorry about that. We are doing our best to resolve the situation. But we have to be thorough with our search in order to do that. I would feel much better if I could take a look in that room as well," Steve nodded toward the medical room.

There was a glance between the two workers, so quick that Steve nearly missed it.

"It's no problem. Please, do as you must."

"Thank you," Steve said, following him into the room.

"I am Andrew Jameson, by the way. This is my assistant, Joel Manning."

"It's a pleasure to meet you both."

Andrew opened the door completely. When Steve stepped in, he had a full view of the machine. It was even more intimidating than he first thought. Not to mention how massive it was, with tubes extending from either side like arms. Steve had been around his fair share of medical equipment. He'd been attached to plenty of it. But he had never seen anything quite like this. Not even in the full medical lab at Stark Tower.

"That's pretty impressive," Steve said as he went over the room.

"It is. It's brand new. An updated life support machine."

In a power company? Steve understood the need for a nurse's office. But a life support machine? Now if that wasn't odd...

"Wow. You guys are really well prepared, aren't you?" Steve chuckled.

"Oh, it's not for us. We are developing it ourselves with new technology. See, we are wanting to try taking the company in a new direction. We've helped the world by giving it clean energy. Now we want to help the world in other ways."

"That's very good. You all truly seem to care about other people."

"Yes, very much so. I'm afraid that this is the reason we are such a large target for these terrorists."

"Could be."

Steve looked into a closet. Empty. He was aware of two pairs of eyes on him, wanting him to move along.

"So, do you do any kind of testing in here?"

"Why do you ask?" Andrew asked, trying his best to sound friendly. But there was a bit of a strain in his voice. He sounded wary.

"I just noticed something that looked like blood on the door in the hall."

It suddenly became so quiet, that Steve had to turn around to make sure they were still there.

"Are you sure its blood?"

"Pretty sure."

Andrew left the room. Joel and Steve followed him. He was already at the outer door, having found the stain.

"I don't know. It could be mud. I don't know where blood would have even come from."

Steve narrowed his eyes. "Yeah. Maybe I was wrong."

But he knew he wasn't.

Andrew gave him a tight smile, before smiling. "An honest mistake. So, are you finished here or do you need to continue searching?"

"No. I'm done."

"Well, I do hope you are successful in stopping them."

"I hope so, too."

Steve walked away, trying not to pay attention to the feeling of their prying eyes. He felt a sense of relief when he heard the door click shut. His relief only increased when he went upstairs.

Something wasn't right.

Steve had learned to trust his gut. And his gut told him that there was more to this than they originally believed.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

Bruce was starting to regret not having had a cup of coffee at least sometime during that day. There was nothing that could show you how tired you were like a car ride. He had to turn the radio up a few times in order to keep himself awake. And to make matters worse, the Other Guy was just underneath the surface. Actually, he'd been very close ever since Bruce found out about Tony's kidnapping.

"I know you want to teach these people a lesson about kidnapping," Bruce muttered. "But we have to wait for that, okay?"

The Other Guy wasn't exactly in a great 'listening mood' at the moment. Bruce tightened his grip on the steering wheel, then eased it.

He couldn't afford to let the beast out. That could possibly ruin the mission and he just wasn't going to let that happen. Also, he didn't want to scare Mia. And, according to the GPS, her house was on the road to his right. He made the turn and was in her driveway in seconds.

"Please, just be good," he said as he pulled in.

He turned the car off as soon as he parked. He took a deep breath before stepping out of the car.

When Bruce knocked on the door, it was answered by her bodyguard, dressed in black, with a gun at his side.

"Dr. Banner?" he said. "Please, come in."

Bruce quickly went into the house. The door was shut behind him.

"Mia is getting her things. She will be down in a minute. You're welcome to sit."

"Thank you, but I'm fine," Bruce answered.

"Things are getting a lot worse now, huh?"

"Yeah, they are. But we have a few leads, so, hopefully you guys won't have to be away from home for very long."

"Roberto?" a female voice came from upstairs through the stairway. "Is he here?"

"Yes. Are you ready?"

"Sure," she struggled down the stairs with bags in her hands, thrown over her shoulder, and seemingly everywhere else on her tiny frame.

Roberto went over to her, grabbing a few of the bags himself, despite her complaints that she had a handle on them.

"Hello, Ms. Adessi," Bruce gave her a sleepy smile.

"Hello to you too," she didn't return the smile.

"Here," Roberto said. "Let's get everything to the car. We need to hurry."

He lead the way outside. Mia turned off the lights, then locked the door as soon as Bruce followed her out.

"You'll have to tell me where to go," Bruce said, as soon as they were all safely in the car.

"I know. Go straight down this road, then take a left."

Bruce took her directions. The car settled into an awkward silence. Roberto busied himself with keeping an eye on the outside world, making sure his charge remained safe. Mia, on the other hand, just seemed distant. Almost angry. All Bruce knew was that someone was going to have to start talking, if they didn't want a sleeping driver behind the wheel.

"So, how far is this place from here?" he asked.

"About an half an hour away," Mia answered. "It's very well hidden."

"Good, good."

"So, what's changed? This is the first time I had to be hauled off to the safe house," she said, sounding short and bitter.

"We might have come a bit closer to finding the people who are after you," Bruce ignored her tone. "But they are really close by, so we just need to be extra careful."

"They've been close by this entire time," she muttered.

"You'll have to excuse her," Roberto said, not taking his eyes off of the window. "She's been in a bit of a bad mood the whole day."

"I don't need you to speak for me, Roberto. I'm not a child."

"Then, stop taking everything out on them. And me. We're just trying to help you."

"What have I done to you?"

"Plenty."

"There are people out there trying to kill me. So sorry I've come off as a bit frustrated."

They did that for the next half hour. Arguing and fussing, only taking a break to tell Bruce where the net turn was. Boy, this was fun. At least he wouldn't have trouble staying awake.

Mia wasn't lying when she said it was very well hidden. The first blue lights of dawn were creeping over the horizon as they made their way inside. Bruce told Natasha that they had gotten there safely. The small house was quiet as they settled in. Bruce went to the nearest thing that he could sleep on, the couch. He stretched out on the soft cushions. Finally, he could get some rest.

"Dr. Banner?"

Or not.

"Yes, Mia?"

"I just wanted to apologize for being a bit short earlier. I really do appreciate what all of you are doing for me."

"It's okay. I understand that you're stressed."

_Please, I just want to sleep._

"That's no excuse," she sat down beside him. "But, there is something else."

Bruce slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes. "And what would that be?"

She looked unsure if she should tell him. Nervous, as if she'd already taken too many steps in the wrong direction.

"I figured, it would be wrong not to tell you, because this might further complicate everything. And you are a doctor, after all."

Bruce wondered why she felt like she would need a doctor. He honestly hoped she wasn't sick on top of everything else.

"Well, I'm more of a Nuclear Physicist, than anything. I could help you if whatever is wrong isn't too severe, but..."

"I'm pregnant."

"...Oh. Pregnant...? Really...?"

"Yeah. I just found out earlier today. Well, I mean, I have a positive pregnancy test. I haven't been to a doctor or anything yet. I have felt kind of sick lately, but I can't tell if it's from stress or if it's from being pregnant," she stopped to take a deep breath. "I don't want anyone to know yet. Not until everything is taken care of."

"Your secret is safe with me. But I don't exactly have anything to confirm if you are or not, if that's what you're wondering."

"That's okay. Just having someone around who half way knows what they're doing helps. I'm a bit worried about his father, though."

"His father?"

"His or hers. If it got out who it might be, things would be really bad for me. For both of us. He is a very high profile guy."

Bruce narrowed his eyes.

"I really should try not to stress so much, though," she smiled at him. "That's bad for the baby."

"Stress can be bad for anyone. That's one thing I can help with, though. Managing stress is kind of important for the survival of the people surrounding me, you know?"

She laughed. "Yes. Definitely."

She stood up. "I'm sorry. I know you must be tired. I'll leave you alone."

Mia went out of the room, leaving Bruce to himself. He sighed, rubbing his temples before lying down again. Two times is a charm?

It wasn't long before he was asleep, so he guessed it was.

ooooooooooooooooo

Whatever sympathy or good feelings Tony had developed for Loki was disappearing over the course of a few hours. Why? Not much, but a simple thought that was plaguing him like a parasite.

Had his arc reactor been damaged?

It kept him from sleeping. It kept him from relaxing, even a little. Not that much of either would be possible with the burning of the skin on his stomach. But he really didn't need something else on top of that.

_Look at you. Just sleeping away,_ Tony thought at Loki's peaceful form. He gritted his teeth. He imagined blasting him with one of his repulsors and he had to admit, it put a smile on his face.

He looked down at the glowing light in the middle of his chest. He pressed his palm against it, finding some comfort at the warmth underneath his hand. It seemed okay, but he just couldn't be sure. What if that magic was still lurking underneath the surface? What if Loki had found some way to control him and was just lying in wait, ready to strike at any moment?

Tony sighed, releasing the arc reactor from his touch. He really wished he had JARVIS with him to run diagnostics.

Eventually, they were fed. Their favorite drone came in, uncharacteristically quiet. He dropped Loki's food bowl on the floor in front of him, the clatter scaring him awake. The drone smirked at him as he handed the other bowl to Tony, even though he knew he didn't like to be handed things.

"Morning, Sleepyhead," Tony said, when they were alone again. "Sleep well?"

Loki glared at him through dark lidded eyes. No, I did not, he seemed to say.

_Well, good enough for you._

"I know I didn't."

Loki pointed at his stomach.

"Yeah, that. Amongst other things."

Loki cocked his head, like a confused puppy. Tony shook his head.

"You ever find yourself awake all night because of worry?"

Loki shrugged.

"I don't want you touching this anymore," Tony said quietly, touching his arc reactor with a finger. "I know they probably did something to make sure you wouldn't. But I just want to make it clear."

Loki looked at the glowing circle. A smile crossed his lips.

"I'm serious, Loki."

The prince put his hands up in mock surrender. That smile never left.

Tony was beginning to think he would never get a proper night's sleep again.

He decided to drop the matter, for now. He turned his attention to his food. It was still unappetizing and hard to finish. Yes, he was growing hungrier as days passed, but still not enough to be desperate for that stuff. Unlike some people. Tony did still have a chip off his shoulder about their menu differences.

Loki lifted the lid of his bowl, looking at its contents. The smell wafted up to his nose, making his ill, yet hungry stomach feel raw. One problem. His stomach wasn't the only thing that felt raw. He cautiously spooned the food up to his mouth with his fingers. He carefully chewed, thinking that he just might be able to get through it.

But, no. Some of the food hit the burn on his tongue, right in the center, where it hurt the most. Loki had to forgo some of his dignity and spit it out. Okay, this was going to be a little more difficult than he first thought. He sat there, trying to approach this in a better way. He was hungry! He had to eat!

Loki got a little less food into his mouth, trying to be more mindful of his tongue. It looked like it would work this time. Of course, he'd have to eat slowly and he probably wouldn't finish it all. But something was better than nothing.

But then, some of the food bits rolled over on the burn again. He jumped, feeling like the coal was sitting on his tongue again. Once again, he had to spit it out, but some of it stuck to the wound. He had to open his mouth and pick it out, making his eyes water. It hurt so much.

So that's how it was going to be. They take away his ability to eat as punishment.

Loki felt a sudden surge of anger. In a single act of defiance, he threw the food bowl against the bars. Its contents splattered everywhere, but he didn't care.

"What was that about?" Tony asked.

Loki gave him a fiery look. He was too angry to be cordial. Besides, it wasn't like he could properly answer, in case Tony had forgotten.

Tony had made it through almost half of his meal. But it left an after taste in his mouth. He didn't think he could finish it. He glanced at Loki's spilled food. Most of it had made it outside of the cage, but some was still laying on their side. Was Tony really considering eating off the floor when he had a bowl of food in front of him? Yes, he was.

The drone came back before he had a chance to act on it. He took one look at the mess Loki had made and growled under his breath. Loki just sat there, arms crossed, daring him to say something.

"You just don't know how to behave, do you?" he said, taking Tony's bowl.

No. Why should he behave?

The drone took Loki's empty bowl, glaring at him the whole time.

"I'm not getting that up."

Loki shrugged. So?

The drone left. Nothing bad had happened. Apparently, Loki had won that round.

Well, there was the remaining mess, but what was bad about that, compared to what could have happened? He had done something "bad", but he hadn't been punished.

Huh, come to think of it, that had never happened before.

He heard a noise from his right, making him spin around. It was only Tony, though. All right, he wasn't about to start becoming jumpy, thinking that they had something ready to attack him because he threw a tantrum.

"Easy, Reindeer Games," Tony said. He was trying to pull himself to his feet, though he was struggling and grimacing in pain. "Looks like I'm not the only one with anxiety."

Loki rolled his eyes. But he looked at Tony warily. Where did he think he was gong?

"I figured, there's no reason to let that go to waste," Tony pointed at the food spread over the floor.

Loki started scooting back further into his corner, reaching up to grasp the collar that was around his neck. He shook his head, hoping Tony would get the message to stay back.

"What's with you today?" Tony wasn't stopping. Thankfully he couldn't go very fast.

Loki shook his head again, putting a hand out in front him, trying to tell Tony to go away.

Tony finally stopped in his tracks, looking at Loki like he was crazy.

Then it dawned on him.

"That collar is what's keeping you from getting close to me, isn't it?"

Loki nodded, waving his hand for him to go back to his spot.

Tony inwardly groaned. Well, that was great. Here he thought he would finally get something decent to eat. Now he had yet another roadblock to getting anything he wanted.

Great. Just great.

He went back to his corner and sat back down. The relief on Loki's face was clear.

"So, what will it do? Shock you or something?"

Loki nodded again, letting go of the collar.

Why was it that every time Tony was mad at Loki, he always found a way to make him feel a little bit sorry for him?

"That's nice," he said sarcastically, annoyed at the entire situation.

Loki looked at Tony, then back to the food. He took a handful of what had stayed on their side of the bars and threw it to Tony's side. Tony lifted an eyebrow at him.

"Um, thanks," he ate it. It wasn't as good as he had been imagining, but it was five star compared to what he'd been getting.

Loki smiled at him. It wasn't the same creepy smile he'd been giving him a lot, either. It was a real, sweet smile.

"You know, I can't figure you out. At all."

All that did was make Loki's smile bigger.

"You love that, don't you?"

Loki nodded. He liked keeping people on their toes.

"Well, keep that stuff coming and we might be able to get along."


	9. Chapter 9

This was supposed to have been uploaded last night, but I kind of fell asleep before I finished typing it. Oops.

I know that Loki and Tony's part in the last chapter was a bit short. I'd gone a bit overboard with the other bits, so I just included everything I'd skipped in this chapter instead. Think of this one as more of a part two.

And, as always, thank you all for the reviews!

* * *

Daybreak.

It was getting harder to lay low. Everyone was emerging from their homes, on their way to work. He was on the right path. He could sense it. The signature grew stronger as he moved forward. It was taking everything in his power not to run. The last thing he needed was to draw attention to himself. It was already difficult, despite his disguise. What with him being so tall and everything.

It had been a while since Thor had seen his brother. Daily visits to his prison cell were done in vain. He was met with either hostility or silence. Eventually he'd had it with his brother's attitude toward him and his visits lessened until he stopped going altogether.

He sighed. Their meeting this time would be much worse, he knew. Depressing as that was.

"Hey, Thor," Steve's voice crackled through the ear piece, startling Thor out of his thoughts. "You there?"

"Yes," he answered back as quietly as he could.

"I just left Adessi. I found something. I think."

"Did you?"

"Yeah. I went into the basement and found two men fiddling around with this machine. They said it was some sort of medical equipment they had created. For taking the company in a new direction. But the strange thing was, I found a blood stain on the door frame."

Thor furrowed his brow. "A blood stain?"

"I asked them about it. They tried to tell me it wasn't blood. I knew they were lying. I could tell that they didn't like me being there either."

"That sounds rather suspicious."

"Very. Something is definitely going on."

Thor rubbed his forehead. They didn't need anything to make this more complicated than it already was.

"I'm going to see if Natasha can take us to where Mia is. I really feel like we need to question her."

"Sounds like a good idea."

A drop of water fell on his nose. He wiped it off in annoyance and looked up. The sky was beginning to darken.

He felt that anger rise in him. This again?

"Do you see this storm coming in, Captain?"

"Yeah. Is that you?"

"No. It is not."

The magic was strong. Overwhelming and hard to follow.

"This is what you told us about earlier, isn't it?"

"It most certainly is," Thor quickened his steps.

"Where are you?"

"Uh," he looked around. "I am not entirely sure."

Thunder rumbled above them. People looked up, concerned at the pop up storm. The wind picked up and they began to walk faster, looking for shelter.

Thor tried to concentrate. He could just barely feel where the strongest area was. He sped toward it, while he could still grasp onto the signature.

He had to hurry.

The rain began to pound on the pavement. He dodged people, ignoring the dirty looks he received when he accidentally bumped into someone.

This storm was much stronger than the one he'd encountered in New Mexico. The wind blew in his face, making it hard to see where he was going through the rain. But he couldn't stop. He was getting closer. He was almost there.

Then, in his haste, he bumped into...something.

Or someone?

It was enough to send him reeling backward. Falling onto the ground.

He blinked, confused. His eyes told him that no one was in front of him.

"Are you all right?" a woman approached him.

But his senses told him differently.

"I am fine," he said to the woman. He pulled himself to his feet.

The signature was coming from that spot in front of him. It was unmoving. It was like it was waiting for him.

"Are you sure?" she stepped closer to him. "That was a pretty nasty fall."

"Stay back," Thor put his hand up to make sure she didn't get any closer.

"What is it?"

Thor drew his fist back and punched at the seemingly empty spot in front of him. His fist connected. The person's invisibility broke from the force and he fell.

The woman gasped, shocked at what she had just witnessed.

"It would be best that you leave," Thor said to her. "I cannot have anyone getting hurt."

She was too afraid to move. The man in front of them tried to get up.

"You have to go," Thor nudged her in the opposite direction.

She got the message and ran.

The chance of staying undercover lowered with every step she took. But what choice did he have, really?

He turned back to the person sprawled in front of him. His hair was dark, but other than that, he looked nothing like Loki. That didn't mean it couldn't be him.

Thor reached down, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.

"Are you responsible for this?" Thor asked gruffly, pointing to the sky with his free hand.

No answer.

"What is your name?"

He still didn't say a word. But a smile crept over his face.

"So, you want to give me the silent treatment. Is that it?"

Thor went to his ear piece.

"Captain," he said. "I believe we have our first suspect."

oooooooooooooooooo

There was a difference in the cage today.

Tony noticed it immediately. He almost didn't believe it at first. But he didn't think he was going crazy yet.

The warmth spread over him like a blanket, melting into his bones. He'd been so cold for so long, he almost forgot what it felt like to be warm. He leaned his head back against the wall, reveling in it.

It felt so good.

"Did we do something right for a change?" he asked aloud, not expecting an answer. He was just so happy that someone had turned the heat on.

Loki looked around, surprised at the change. It was pleasant, yes. Even for him, being naturally cold natured.

Tony rubbed his bare arms, trying to encourage every iota of heat to enter his skin. It was nice to feel some relief after being miserable for so many hours. Or what he guessed was many hours. His stomach was sticky with dried blood and any time he tried to wipe any of it off, it reopened one or more cuts. He really hoped he wouldn't end up getting an infection. He had a feeling that it would be quite entertaining for them if he did. Meaning nothing good for him. He looked at the blood stain on his shirt. He wished they would give him another one.

He glanced at Loki's side of the cage. He was no longer wrapped in his blanket, though he still clutched a corner of it in his hand. There was a troubled look on his face.

Somewhere deep inside, Tony felt he knew why it was there. First, Loki barely got a scolding from throwing his food. Now, they were being comforted by this heat? Their behavior wasn't matching up with their past actions. But he pushed those thoughts away. He needed the comfort. Even if it only lasted for a few minutes. So, any negativity needed to leave immediately.

And it did.

For a little while.

Then the heat began to rise. Or it felt like it, anyway. It could have just been at the same temperature for too long. Now he was starting to sweat. So much so, that he had to take his shirt completely off. Not that it helped much.

"Um, okay. I think you can stop now," he directed to the camera.

Loki was lying flat on his back, wiping sweat off of his forehead. His usually pale skin was turning pink. This was no good. He knew they would pull something like this. Turning something good into something bad. And to make matters worse, the food he had thrown, yeah, that was starting to smell. Badly.

He chuckled. They were truly evil. Maybe he could learn a thing or two.

_If_ he made it out of this. Jotuns and heat didn't mix well. It was actually one of his worst weaknesses. Even a human could handle it better than he could.

Tony groaned from his corner.

Or maybe they couldn't.

"Loki," he said. "Do me a favor. Apologize to these idiots."

Loki lifted his head, giving Tony an incredulous expression. Do what now?

"Maybe it will help! I don't know!" Tony said, shrugging.

Loki shook his head. _I am so disappointed in you, Stark._

"Well, can you do _something_? I'm not feeling too good, here."

Loki scoffed. Then he tried to speak. Tony wasn't quite sure, because the word was so slurred and distorted. But it sounded like he had said, "Weak."

"Excuse me? Oh, so I'm feeling sick because the human body isn't meant to be in this kind of heat. And you call me 'weak' because of it?"

Loki shook his head again. This communication thing was becoming a problem. He didn't think Tony was weak because he was getting sick. He was weak because he wanted him to just give into them.

"Are you saying that you didn't call me weak?"

Loki shook his head, yet again.

"Then why did you say you didn't?"

Loki rolled his eyes and waved his hand. This was too bothersome to continue.

Tony sighed, pressing his palms against his forehead. Apparently, he thought so too.

Tony already wasn't feeling up to par because of his night long (or was it day long?) anxiety. But now, his head was really starting to ache. He was feeling woozy and nauseated. And that spoiling food in the other corner wasn't helping matters any.

Tony laid on his back like Loki, hoping it would help. It did keep the sweat out of his wounds. But his other symptoms prevailed. And there was no coolness left in the concrete. Tony ran a hand through his damp hair and took a few deep breaths. He knew the symptoms of heat exhaustion and he was feeling them now. The next step was having a heat stroke. Something he definitely did not want. They probably didn't even know how to handle that sort of thing.

He just wanted some water.

_Just breathe, Tony. Just breathe. You've gotten through worse._

The tough thing about nausea was trying to keep everything down. Deep breathing did help some, but it wasn't a cure. The trick was trying not to think about the contents of his stomach coagulating and churning. Like an oatmeal filled sea during a storm. Causing waves of acid to hit the wall of his stomach and move up into his esophagus. Going higher and higher until he could practically taste it in the back of his throat.

Tony closed his eyes.

_Don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it._

But, of course, it was the only thing he could think about.

Loki, on the other hand, was being overcome with weakness. Nearly as bad as when they were finished with his "punishments". He thought about trying to switch to his Jotun form. Maybe it would help him to regulate his temperature better? Or that could make it worse. Then again, there might be no change at all. Besides, with his magic being so frayed, he didn't need to do anything that extreme.

Tony rolled onto his side, into fetal position with his arms wrapped around his stomach. He flinched when his arms were pressed against the tender, broken skin. His head swam. He was afraid to move. Too much more and he would really be in trouble.

Too late.

He threw up. Everything that he had eaten earlier poured onto the floor. Even when there was nothing left to give, he dry heaved until he was exhausted.

Loki was more than annoyed by it. Why did the man have to turn toward him and do that? Now they were going to have to live with that stuff for who knows how long. And with the heat too? Loki was beginning to think he might be the next one to throw up.

Tony laid back down, after having propped himself up with his arms through his ordeal. The room spun around him. Between this and sweating so much, he was sure he was dehydrated. His mouth felt murky. Coated with the taste of ick. They weren't given a lot of water to begin with. Sometimes the drone would come by with a bottle of it and let them drink for a few minutes. Then he'd take it away before they'd had enough.

Water. If he could just have even a little. Just a little.

In his daze, Tony thought he heard the door screech as it was opened. Footsteps. Then the clang of the cage door being opened. Someone muttered a few curses above him. Then he was lifted and taken away.


	10. Chapter 10

I know, I know. I suck because I can't keep to my own schedule. Sorry (again) about that.

More questions for the Avengers, what with this magical guy that Thor caught. And at least you'll get to see what happened to Tony. Also, I think I should probably put in a trigger warning for mentions of past non con (small hints is really all it is. Nothing graphic. I promise.).

And a great many thanks for all of your reviews. Really, I don't deserve you guys.

* * *

They surrounded their captive in the middle of the temporary S.H.I.E.L.D. base. He stared them down, foolishly unafraid of the remaining Avengers. He hadn't tried to escape. His hands were handcuffed to the back of chair. His feet were bound. He had been placed inside a room, similar to the one that was built for the Hulk in the Helicarrier. It was built from strong materials with a force field of sorts surrounding it in order to keep magic users inside. It was still something that was in an early phase and still being tested.

Hopefully, it would work.

"Seems to be the quiet type," Clint muttered, hand on his bow, just in case the guy tried anything.

"You attack innocent people, help to kidnap our friend, play with powers that you have no right to use, yet you still have nothing to say?" Thor growled at him.

He returned Thor's question with a sarcastic smile.

"I see no reason for you to be smiling," Thor seethed. He punched the wall, making everyone jump. "Tell us where he is!"

He stepped forward, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.

"Who has taught you how to use such power? What is their name?"

The prisoner was no longer smiling, but he wasn't answering either.

Thor huffed angrily and dropped him.

"It's possible that he's been brainwashed," Steve suggested. "After being in a place like that, especially."

Thor ran a hand through his hair.

"I can still sense Loki's magic. It's all over him."

The other three glanced at each other.

"_Are_ you Loki?" Steve asked the captive.

"He better hope he's not," Clint raised his bow.

"We need him to find Tony," Natasha put her hand on the bow. "Remember?"

"You guys already took fingerprints, eye scans and everything, right?" Clint asked.

"Inconclusive," Steve said. "He's not in our database."

"But, with Loki's shapeshifting abilities, such things will not be of much help," Thor said.

"Well, isn't that just peachy," Clint muttered.

"You're the one who knows him best," Natasha said. "Is there anything that let's you know whether it's actually Loki or not?"

Thor studied his subject for a moment, then shook his head.

Things could never be easy.

"Guys," she said. "I think you should go into the other room. Maybe see if you can think of any other ideas."

Clint nodded.

"But why must we leave?" Thor asked.

"Just come on, you two," Clint lead the others away. "Let Tasha do her work."

When they were out, the prisoner had his eyes on Natasha. He was unwavering, challenging, but so was she.

"You are really impressive, being able to learn enough magic to do what you did. If you're not Loki, anyway."

He shrugged.

"You've made Thor pretty angry, though. Which is never a good idea, I might add."

She paced slowly in front of him.

"I used to work for Innokenti."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Don't play dumb with me. I know who you work for. I just want to know how you learned everything. And where Tony is."

She leaned down in front of him, becoming eye level.

"We could let you go, you know. If you give us what we want."

He smiled and shook his head.

Natasha straightened up, looking down at him.

"I feel bad for you, really. Innokenti wasn't the most friendly person. I have a feeling that he's probably done some terrible things to you."

She saw a flicker in his eyes. One blink and she would have missed it. Natasha continued.

"We could give you protection, if you need it."

He just simply shook his head again.

Stubborn fellow.

"But, if you don't tell us anything, we will have you punished. I would hate to do that to someone if they're not working completely of their own will. It's your choice."

She walked away from him.

"I'll bring you some food. You can make your decision when I come back.

His eyes brightened at the mention of food. But when Natasha brought it to him, it was ignored. She sat it on a small table that was next to him.

"I'm not going to force you to eat. But I do want to hear what you have to say. Are we going to do this the hard way or the easy way?"

He gave her a look of boredom.

"Nothing?"

Obviously not.

"Then I guess we'll be here for a while."

ooooooooooooooooo

Tony slowly opened his eyes, cringing against the sudden assault of bright light. His limbs were sore. His head still throbbed. His stomach felt raw.

"You are causing us a lot of trouble, Mr. Stark," Innokenti said from Tony's side.

Tony looked up from his spot on the small bed. They were the only two people there, from what he could see.

"Here," Innokenti handed him a glass of water. "Drink this."

Tony took it, trying to hold it steady in his shaky hand. He peered into the glass, searching for anything suspicious.

"You don't have to worry about it. It's clean. After all, we can't have you dying on us, can we?"

He chuckled. Tony glared at him.

"You know, I'm trying to be nice to you. I know you must be thirsty."

Innokenti sat on the edge of the bed. Tony scooted away from him. Though he didn't have a lot of room.

"What? Do you think I'll bite?"

Tony ignored him, taking a slow sip of water. It didn't taste offensive.

"Drink all of it."

"Will you give me a minute?" Tony snapped, his voice raspy. He took another slow sip.

He didn't hear him say anything else. Maybe he had made him angry. That could have dire consequences.

"Where is Loki?" Tony asked.

"Where do you think he is? Same place as usual."

Tony nodded, continuing to drink his water. He wondered if they'd turn the heat off or if they'd left Loki to die in there from overexposure.

"He is a bit of a complication, that one. He's hard to break, especially since we're not allowed to hurt him too much. He won't be very useful to us if he's dead."

"Like me?"

"Yes. A lot like you, in fact. Though, it does allow me to have more fun with him. There are many things you can do to a man to make him want to die, without doing the killing yourself."

Tony felt a shiver go down his spine.

"I know his deepest fears," Innokenti smiled.

He got closer to Tony, putting his hand on his knee. "I've made him scream, I've nearly made him cry. I've even heard him cry out for his brother once."

Tony pulled his knee away from him. But that didn't stop him from getting even further into his personal space.

"I know you know of him trying to starve himself to death. That was all because of me."

He grabbed Tony's chin. Then he drew his fingers harshly over the cuts on his stomach.

"And one of these days, the scars you have inside will make this look like nothing."

He pressed his thumb against Tony's lips.

"I promise you that."

Tony pushed his hand away from him, dropping the glass onto the floor. He backed against the headboard, baring his teeth.

"You. Do. Not. Touch. Me. Do you understand?"

Innokenti laughed as he got up from the bed.

"I'll bring you some more water in a minute. You just behave yourself in here," he said as he went over to the door and left.

Tony picked up a piece of broken glass and threw it at the closed door.

ooooooooooooooooooo

Loki felt nothing but relief when the heat was turned off. But they had taken Tony away. They took Tony away, but they didn't take him. He was just left there to suffer.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead. Frustrated. He was hurting all over. Just another reason to hate his Jotun heritage.

He let his arm flop to the side, taking deep breaths of the cooling air. It still smelled terrible from the spoiled food and the contents of Tony's stomach. What he really wanted was fresh air from outside. Oh, how he would love to be outside! He hadn't seen it in so long. The sky, the trees, even a landfill would be welcome. Well, maybe not a landfill. That was going a little too far, considering his current surroundings.

Maybe, if he were good, he could ask Innokenti to go out in the yard or whatever they had. Just for a few minutes.

_No, no! What are you doing? You chastised Tony for wanting to give into them earlier. Don't be weak._

_Don't be._

_Just, please, don't start being weak._

Loki rolled onto his side. Would they help him? Would they give him water? They had to. They still had to, didn't they?

Loki had never been so happy to see the drone in his life.

He came in, dragging a hose behind him, that was hooked up somewhere outside the area. He was muttering something, obviously unhappy about having to clean up their mess. Especially after he said he wouldn't. If Loki wasn't in such bad shape, he would have laughed at him.

But he had water.

He sprayed all of the mess out of the way. Loki tried to reach out toward him, but he wasn't being noticed. He let out a small whimper, trying to get his attention. Even then, it took the drone a while to see that he was in need.

"Oh, does the prince request a drink?" he asked sarcastically.

Loki nodded. _Just give it to me. Do you have to humiliate me further?_

The drone sprayed Loki in the face with the hose. Loki jumped back, wiping water from his eyes. . The drone just laughed.

"Don't look at me like that," he said to Loki's glower. "It cooled you off, didn't it?"

When he left, the cage was fairly clean. And Loki still had nothing to drink.

oooooooooooooooooooo

The prisoner had been sitting in his chair for the rest of the day. Day turned into night and night turned back into day. He went unbothered, like a kid in time out. Though, he was being carefully watched by The Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. That morning, Natasha entered his room again, trying to get any information out of him.

Clint was looking at the security footage through his Ipad while he had his breakfast and morning coffee. He didn't think this would be easy. After all, no one would trust such information with a weak minded person.

"Good morning, Clint," Steve said, walking through the door.

"Morning," Clint took a sip of coffee.

"Any news?"

"Nope."

Steve looked disappointed, but not surprised. He sat down across from Clint at the table.

"Not going to eat anything?"

"Yeah, in a minute. I'm heading out in a bit."

"For?"

"I need to question Mia about some things I found at Adessi. So, I'm going to find the safe house."

"Oh."

"Want to come?"

"Sure. It's better than sitting around staring at this guy all day. Natasha told me about the blood and stuff. What do you think happened?"

"I don't know. I mean, Loki's magic covered the place, then these guys were acting fishy when I searched the area. I really don't want to believe that Mia's own company has something to do with this."

"Or Mia herself."

"Exactly."

"Did anyone warn Bruce?"

"Yeah, I talked to him when I woke up this morning."

"And Mia?"

"She knows that I want to talk to her."

"Right. Gotcha."

"Where is Thor, by the way? Seemed like he was in a bad mood all yesterday."

"Can you blame him? I think he went out to look for Loki again."

Clint nodded, looking back to the screen.

Natasha wasn't there anymore.

"Hey, where did...?"

The door was opened and there she was.

"Well, I just found out why our friend won't tell us anything."

The guys looked at her, waiting for an answer.

"They cut out his tongue."

ooooooooooooooooo

Tony was in his new environment for a couple of days. Not that he had a choice, though he supposed having a bed was a pleasant change. He was slowly rehydrated and he was actually given some decent food, for once. But he still didn't feel one hundred percent. His stomach was healing. The cuts had become nothing but scars. However, he was becoming uneasy.

Innokenti hadn't come into his room anymore. He wondered if their conversation had even taken place at all. It was more than possible that he came up with the whole thing in his head, right? What with the sickness and all.

He tugged his sheets over his shoulders. Who was he kidding?

Just like in the cage, he barely slept. Only this time, it wasn't Loki he was worried about. He felt the need to keep one eye open, especially at night. He knew exactly what Innokenti had meant by those scars. He never thought that he would have to worry about _that_, but look where he was.

He was very jumpy when someone entered his room. He was nearly the cat on the drapes when another one of the lovely assistants, not the drone, came in.

This one spoke in Russian, unlike the others. Innokenti was the only person he had met in there that sometimes spoke the language. He always carried a gun. A real one, not the stun guns the rest of them had earlier. And, though at first, Tony was sure he was going to be treated just as poorly from him as the rest of them, he was happy to find out that he wouldn't be. While this gentleman wasn't what one would call nice, he actually took care of him. He was careful of any wounds and made sure Tony drank all of his water and ate all of his food. He helped him into some clean clothes every day. He never gave him any problems.

This time, Tony's helper made sure he could stand. He was a bit wobbly at first, nearly falling over, but he could get to his feet. And, with some help, he could walk. He was lead to the door, very slowly. Then they made their way out into the hall. Tony didn't like this. Going out there meant he would either be taken to Innokenti's toture chamber or he would be put back into the cage.

A few others passed by, not giving them any attention. As they continued, Tony began to notice that he didn't recognize where they were. The halls broadened until they merged into a room with windows and a door.

And sunlight.

Tony felt a rise of excitement, but then became wary as they left the building and he took his first step onto the grass.

What was going on, here?

He looked at his helper. What do I do, now?

A fleeting thought said he was brought there to be executed, but Innokenti said they still needed him alive. Besides, he would probably want to be the one to kill Tony himself, if it ever came to that.

Tony's helper motioned for him to go forward, but Tony didn't dare. He wanted to run. To take his freedom by the reigns and just _run_, but surely that wouldn't end well.

"What are you doing?" Tony asked.

He knew a little Russian and could pick up "go" and "outside".

Well, he figured that much.

"Why?"

He shrugged. "Get some sun," Tony was able to translate.

He looked up at the sky. It was so bright and blue. They were surrounded by hills of green grass and trees beyond that. They were in the middle of nowhere and it was absolutely beautiful. Tony carefully sat down, feeling the grass and dirt underneath his hands. It felt wonderful. The fresh air was a blessing to him. It seemed clean, unlike the stale air inside. He took a deep breath, holding it in a moment before letting it out again.

He glanced back to the Russian. He was standing there, leaning against the wall with a cigarette in his mouth. Tony was being ignored. The thought of escape was an itch in his mind again, but one look at the gun in his pocket was enough to make it disappear.

The only thing he would be allowed to do was "get some sun".

Yet, he wasn't angry. Not at him, anyway.

He was able to enjoy his surroundings for a few minutes more. But when the cigarette was gone, so was his break.

He was taken back in. Everything in him screamed at the sight of the walls and lights. But he did as he was told. He was once again in his room and given some clothes to change into.

Water and food were brought to him once more. Then he was taken back to the cage, obviously deemed well enough to resume his punishment.

He went to his corner, happy that, at least, the floors had been cleaned. Loki looked up from his spot on the floor. His eyes were tired and he looked, generally, unhealthy. There was an empty bottle next to him. He had finally been given some water, but not nearly enough. More than usual each day, at least.

"I didn't think you would be coming back anytime soon," he said.

"I didn't think you would be talking anytime soon," Tony answered, noting that there was still a slight slur to his room mate's speech.

"Well, you didn't expect I would be mute forever, did you? I was afraid they had killed you. _They_ seemed pretty afraid of that as well."

"I wasn't _that_ sick."

"You certainly had us fooled."

"So, you were afraid I had died, hmm?" Tony smirked at him.

"Only because it gets pretty lonely here. I would almost take Thor's company at this point."

Tony lifted an eyebrow.

"Almost. I'm not quite that desperate yet,"

_I've even heard him cry out for his brother once._

Tony cringed.

"What?"

"Huh? Oh. It's nothing."

Loki shrugged it off.

Tony almost wanted to ask. Who was he kidding, he did want to ask. Again. _What made you want to kill yourself? I think I know the answer. I'm pretty sure I know. But I'm really afraid now. And I need to know if I should keep my guard up. And I have to know if you're okay now. If you'll ever be okay._

Tony let out a shuddering sigh. He didn't dare say any of that. Not out loud.

But he really was afraid.

And what if the others saw? He didn't think he could ever face the Avengers again if he knew that they saw.

_Stop it. Just stop it. Nothing happened! You're worrying yourself over nothing. He probably just put that in your mind for this exact reaction._

Yeah.

That had to have been it.

"Something on your mind, Stark?"

"No. I'm fine. Are you?"

"No. But considering evrything, well, I'm still alive, aren't I?"

Yes. That, he could hang onto. He had to.

_I'm still alive._


	11. Chapter 11

What? Did I just update early? Why, yes I did! Amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it. Well, I did have this chapter pretty much written in my head for a while. Anyway, this is a very Loki-centric chapter. There will be answers here. Yep. Things are about to get very depressing. And you think Tony had it rough.

As always, thank you for the reviews! I always appreciate your feedback.

* * *

Loki could feel the nervousness building inside of him.

His magic was slowly replenishing itself. The energy flowed through him like a warm, gentle river. His insides were healing and his stomach didn't hurt for the first time in days. It was as though he were waking from a long, nightmare filled sleep.

Which meant they would be coming for him soon.

He didn't have enough to aid in any escape. How desperately he wanted that collar off so he could get to the arc reactor again! He rubbed what skin he could get to under the metal. It was so uncomfortable.

Tony was dozing beside him. For once. Sleeping used to be something he did quite often, but not anymore. And since he hadn't been getting his rest, of course he would want to talk. Yes, Loki was lonely, but the man was becoming insufferable. Having someone else's presence was one thing, but this constant talking had to stop.

Loki supposed he could humor him. For a little while. His patience was running thin.

At that moment. though, he would have been glad for the distraction. Just to take his mind off of things. Ironic, that the one time he wanted Tony to talk was when he had finally gone to sleep. Typical.

Oh well. He supposed he should just enjoy the moments of having less pain. Because it most certainly wasn't going to last. He knitted up what ever remaining damage there was, due to the heat overexposure. He sucked in a breath when there was a sharp jab, somewhere. Even though healing through magic was very efficient, it wasn't always painless.

He let out a deep breath, when he was finished. The color had mostly returned to his skin. He couldn't heal himself all the way in such a short time. There were much deeper problems inside that he didn't want to acknowledge. Problems he couldn't take care of himself, so tried to stuff them in the back of his mind.

This would have to do.

He leaned back against the wall. The coolness had returned to the concrete, thankfully. This place often made him think of Asgard, where he had been imprisoned before. Pacing the floors until he had driven himself into quite a fury.

"You will make a hole in the floor if you do not stop," Thor had teased.

Loki didn't know why he insisted on coming by so much. He did not want his company. And how dare he try to make a joke during his predicament? Was this funny to him? That he had been thrown into prison after Thor's only punishment was running around with some woman on Earth?

Loki couldn't even remember what he had said. Anger had blazed through him by that time. It was probably a flurry of cursing and insults. It must have been, because Thor had looked so mad, yet so hurt at the same time.

_Well, good enough for him._

Just thinking of his former brother made him furious. So much so, heat coursed through his veins. He didn't need this stress, right now. He did NOT need the stress.

He wondered what Thor would think of him now? What would he get then? An 'I told you so'? 'If only you had asked for forgiveness for your crimes'? 'What is wrong, brother? Upset that the trickster has been tricked?'

Then Loki would snarl that he wasn't his brother. Probably spit out some sort of insult towards Thor's intelligence.

But what did that matter? When the favored prince would probably think of him as weak, pathetic, and tainted? That was worse than some 'look at how stupid you are' comment.

Loki sighed.

This was why Tony needed to be awake, right now. Loki never could come up with good internal dialogue when he was worried about something.

And the door was opened. Now, he had no more time. His rare comfort would be taken away.

"Come on," the drone reached down, grabbing Loki by the collar. "Time for you to go."

The noise startled Tony awake. He sat straight up, ready to fight off his assailants.

"Wha...what's going on?" he looked around in all directions.

Loki rolled his eyes.

"Nothing you need to worry about, Stark. They're not taking you. At least, not right now."

"Better go back to sleep while you can," the drone grinned at him before yanking Loki's collar. Hard.

Tony paled before this angry look appeared.

"What are you going to do to him?"

"That would be none of your business," the drone snapped a chain to Loki's collar, pulling him along.

Like he was nothing but a dog.

Tony pulled himself to his feet and went forward, the bars separating him from the two.

"I want to know what you're going to do!"

"What does it matter to you?" the drone snapped. "What? Are you two lovers or something now?"

Loki ignored him. "I said it's nothing you need to worry about."

Why did that man have to act like he cared what happened to him, anyway?

Tony stared him down. Fear, anger, questioning.

What was with him, lately?

"I'll bring your little friend back, later. You can wait."

The drone lead Loki through the metal door, into the hall. A couple of others were there, waiting for them. One had a piece of cloth that he used to tie around Loki's eyes.

They never wanted him to know where they went.

The drone yanked his leash once more, making Loki stumble forward, nearly falling.

He could hear them laughing.

Loki tried to swallow his anger. It wouldn't do much to help by this point.

"Poor thing, can barely stand on his own feet," one of them said. Teasing, joking.

They made him sick.

He was tugged along, trying to tread lightly, so as not to trip.

He could hear the door open and knew they were in the outside world. The warmth gently touched his skin. The smell of grass and trees wafted past his nose. Birds were singing. But he wouldn't be allowed to enjoy it. Wouldn't be allowed to see the beauty surrounding him.

He was pushed into a car, trying to crawl over the leather until he found his seat. The voices were around him, unmocking, this time. They were talking business. Innokenti's voice was among them, in the front seat. It sent a chill down Loki's spine.

The door slammed shut, the engine was turned on. The car began to move. They were on their way.

The trip wasn't a quiet one. The men took part in lively conversation. Mostly of women and what they were going to do when they went home. As if they were typical workers with nine to five jobs.

Loki mostly ignored them. Lost in his own world. Something he learned to do a long time ago, in order to keep what little sanity he had left.

It was funny, how the first time he rode in this car with them, he thought he had found allies. Just some rogues that wanted to run the world their own way.

Right. He could respect that.

If only he had known their true nature, he would have never agreed to this.

The farther they went, the more cars he could hear passing by. They stopped more often. He could hear voices of people outside, when there was a lull in the noise within the car. They had made him lie down, which was awkward at best, considering what little space he had. They couldn't have any passersby seeing a blindfolded man with them. Might cause suspicion.

That's how Loki always knew they were close to their destination. It was a pattern. He didn't know where they were, but he knew they were in a city of sorts.

They turned down a road, slowing down. They drove around for a bit more, turning, seemingly aimlessly, until they finally stopped.

Loki sat up warily. Then he was hit rather hard on the shoulder with something.

"You will only sit up when we tell you to," one of them said.

Loki rubbed his shoulder, seething. But he laid back down on the seat.

It took a while. He found he had more room, as the others had gotten out. Though, he could feel the presence of one still in the backseat. A few minutes later, the door was opened, making him fall halfway out, before he caught himself.

More laughter, more jokes, ha, ha, very funny.

Loki was lead by his chain into a building. Their footsteps echoed through the hall. They paused, then he could hear the "ding" of an elevator. He was always glad for that, knowing he wouldn't have to deal with any stairs. Boy, would they get a kick out of that.

A short ride in the elevator.

Another walk down another hall.

Another door to go through.

Then, Loki was taken to a chair, which he was ungraciously pushed into. The collar was removed, letting the skin underneath breathe. Next, was the blindfold.

The bright light that shone through the thin curtains over the window were a bit much for his eyes. Once they were adjusted, he could observe his surroundings.

His specially assigned bedroom. Plain, dull, but comforting. He had been left alone.

It was their deal. No one had deviated from it. Now, he would be left in the care of others. For a day. Unless something went wrong. And that was more than possible. There were some perks to this, yes. But the knowledge of what was coming always clouded any good that happened to him, here.

And, thus, he waited.

"Good morning," a cheery woman came into his room about half an hour later. She was young, probably in her early twenties. Her hair was dark brown, touching her shoulders.

"Good morning," Loki tried to smile, but it just wasn't in him. He knew her pretty well, by now. Miss Carboni, was her name. She had been his caretaker there, seemingly forever. Formerly hating her job, having to deal with the man who nearly destroyed New York. Until she saw what was being done to him. Even then, it took her a while to warm up to him. But, eventually, she caved.

Loki _was_ rather charming, after all. When he wanted to be.

She stood in front of him, hands on her hips and shaking her head in disapproval.

"What?" Loki questioned carefully.

"Look at you! You're so skinny. It's like you're melting away. Do they ever feed you over there?"

Loki chuckled. "When they're in the mood, I suppose."

"That is shameful. Absolutely shameful."

_You think that's shameful, you should see what else they do to me._

"Why don't you sit on the bed? I'm sure it would be much more comfortable."

"I would, but I would much rather have a shower, first. If that is okay."

"Of course it is. Come along."

She lead him to the bathroom across the hall. Loki could catch the energy bouncing off the walls. Warning him, that if he dare try to escape, he would recieve a shock that would probably send an elephant to its knees.

"Here are your clothes," she handed him the bundle, which included a wash cloth and towel.

"Thank you," he said as she left, giving him his privacy.

"No need to thank me," she smiled at him before closing the door.

Loki removed all of his clothes before stepping into the shower. He turned the warm water on, letting it fall over his face. Then he took the soap, washing his hair and everything else. It was nice to feel sort of clean.

He stepped out a few minutes later, drying off and putting his new clothes on. They were pretty much the same as his old ones, except they smelled better.

He let himself out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom, where he found a covered meal and a glass of water waiting for him. How lovely not to have stuff in metal pots being thrown at him. Loki decided he needed to do something for this female human. Okay, she was still technically on the "bad" side. But he didn't forget people who treated him with so much kindness. Perhaps when he grew strong enough to rule this pathetic realm, he would spare her. Maybe give her a nice postion of power within his castle or palace or whatever this place had for it's rulers.

He just had to live through this, first.

Loki heartily ate every bite of his food and drank every drop of his water. It was much better than what he had gotten in the cage. Of course, even that could be worse. After seeing what Tony was fed, he knew it could definitely be worse.

His stomach was soon full for the first time in such a long while. Loki curled up in his bed to sleep it off.

"Loki," a soft voice called to him.

He groaned and turned onto his other side.

_Go away._

"You have to get up," Miss Carboni softly shook his shoulder. "They need you, now."

Dread arose in his chest.

"Five more minutes?" he muttered.

She chuckled. "It's been two hours."

"It doesn't feel like it."

"Come on, now. Please hurry. They'll be mad if I don't get you in there, soon."

Loki reluctantly forced himself to sit up, groggy and grumpy.

Was there nothing he could do to get out of this?

He obediently followed behind her. His heart pounded with each step. Louder and louder in his ears as they drew closer.

Like a child, he wanted to ask Miss Carboni if she would hold his hand until they got there. But, he thought against it.

She opened the door for him. They walked inside what looked like a medical waiting room. Two men were on the other side.

"You're late," one said, looking very unhappy.

"I know, I know," she responded quietly. "I'm sorry, Mr. Jameson."

Loki bit his lip. He didn't like the attitude that one was giving her. Not one bit.

"It was my fault, really," he said, in her defense. "I was asleep. She had quite a time, trying to wake me."

Jameson blew him off as if he had said nothing.

"You should be able to do your job correctly, by now."

"I really am sorry."

"Just go," he snapped. Then, he directed to Loki, "Get inside and lie down on the bed."

Loki narrowed his eyes at him before stepping into the room.

"Without the attitude, please."

Loki tried to settle down. His nerves were giving him an especially hard time, now. It became even harder, when they stripped him naked (he didn't like anyone undressing him). They at least had the decency to cover up his lower half with a sheet.

Loki couldn't stop staring at the repulsive machine that hovered over and around him. Jameson's assistant, what was his name again? Something Manning? He took Loki's wrist, stretching his arm out.

He quickly snatched it away.

"This is going to happen," Jameson said. "You might as well take it easy. The more you cooperate, the quicker this will go and the less pain you'll feel."

Loki tried to take deep breaths as Manning took his wrist again. He dabbed the inside of his elbow and stuck a needle through the skin. Loki tried not to tense up. Tried and failed. Clear liquid was pushed inside of him. As the needle was removed and the machine was set up, Loki began to feel sleepy. He wouldn't actually fall asleep. He would just be too weak to move. It was a cruel technique. They had to come up with a medicine of sorts to keep him still, without affecting the potency of his blood. The magic that was in it. Whether it didn't fully put him to sleep because they _couldn't_ figure it out or because they didn't _want_ to figure it out, didn't matter. He was having to go through unnecessary misery either way.

Jameson then stuck a slightly larger needle into the bend of his other arm. Manning stuck it into the one he already had a hold of. They taped them down to keep them in place. The needles were attached to tubes, which lead to the large, metal encasing of the machine, which arced over him. In the back, there was a removable tank.

"Is he ready?" Jameson asked.

Manning nodded.

Jameson made a few adjustments. Then, Loki's blood was drawn out of one arm, through the tubing. He watched the clear plastic fill up with red as it made its way into the machine. Being a magical creature of sorts, Loki's entire body was coated in magic some way or another. After many tests and studies, these humans had figured out that they could drain it from his blood. The machine separated it and collected it in the tank.

After it sat for a couple of minutes in its destination, the blood was drained through the other tube and back into Loki.

It was a slow process, as the machine only took a little at a time. The first half hour actually wasn't so bad. It was when it started taking too much of his magic. _That_ was when he began to feel it.

He felt as though someone were reaching inside of him, grabbing onto his organs and twisting them like wet rags. His muscles were cramped to the point that they felt as though they would tear. His head pounded behind his eyes.

And that was only the beginning.

Loki would have cried out if he could, but they had taken his voice.

His voice.

His body.

Himself.

For hours he laid there, wishing he were dead. This was more than any living thing should have to go through. It was too much. Too much. He wanted it to stop. He _needed_ it stop. Just please, anything to make it stop. Just stop. Just _stop_.

And, eventually it would. The machine would. But it left him with unbearable wounds inside.

He could barely feel them slip the needles out of him and cover the tiny pinpricks with band aids. Barely felt them lift him into a stretcher and wheel him back to his room. Was hardly aware of being given pain killers, though they didn't work very well.

As their version of anesthesia wore of, he tossed and turned. Pounding his fists against his head, wrapping his arms around his stomach, speaking such words that even he couldn't understand.

Except for one.

_Please_.

_Please_.

_Please_.

Miss Carboni was brought in when he had exhausted himself. Enough not to accidentally hit her with his flailing about. She had brought a cloth and cold water with her. His bed moved as she sat next to him, cradling his head, while dabbing his face with the damp cloth. She put the bottle holding the rest of the water to his lips. He was somehow able to gulp some of it down. He moaned in pain, covered in sweat.

"Shhh, it's okay. It's okay," she whispered to him. "This won't last forever. The pain will go away. You'll be up and better soon."

He simply laid in her arms, unable to do anything else.

"Just focus on breathing. You can do that. One breath at a time."

He tried. Inhale, exhale. Concentrate.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

She continued in her attempt to sooth him with her words. Softly stroking his cheek with her thumb. He shook in her hold, weakness overtaking him.

"I...I fear that I...that I am...dying," he was able to get out.

"You're not going to die."

"You...don't...know...that."

"Loki..."

"No," he bit his lip, willing away a terrible sharpness in his stomach. "You humans...you do not know what...you are...messing with."

She _did_ look worried after that statement, but refused to back down.

"I know that they do awful things to you. But you can't give up, okay? Close your eyes and think of times when you were happy. I know it's hard, but you can do it. You can."

She took his hand in hers.

"You're strong, aren't you? You've survived this long."

_This isn't about will. They're making me sick. They're killing me._

But, he didn't say it. He managed to give her hand a small squeeze.

"You...are a good...woman...taking care...of me," he smiled. "They...should sing...of you in...Valhalla."

That got a laugh out of her.

"It's my job," she smiled back. "I can't have my patient suffering alone, can I?"

"Did you...forget...who I am?"

The smile disappeared from her face.

"No. I didn't forget."

Loki shook his head. He still didn't understand humans.

"As I said...you...are a...good woman."

Sometime during the day, Loki was able to fall asleep. It was probably after they gave him another dose of painkillers. He was awakened a few hours later. There was no more sunlight streaming through the window. Miss Carboni tried to get him to eat a little more, but his stomach simply could not accept it. She was able to get his clothes back on and coax him to drink a little more water, at least. He was allowed to stay overnight. However, once morning came, so did that band of fools.

He wasn't feeling much better. But did that matter?

They replaced his collar and chain. Even though Loki could hardly sit up, much less stand and walk, they forced him to his feet, anyway. He couldn't keep up, as they dragged him along. Sometimes he fell and one would yank him up by the arm or his hair.

He was more than happy to see the car.

When he was able to get into his seat, they covered his eyes with the blindfold. They piled in, started the car, and made their way back.

oooooooooooooooooooo

Tony could hear them.

Footsteps growing closer to the door. A loud insult.

They must have brought Loki back.

Tony stayed still, when the door opened. Then the cage door squealed and his room mate was dragged inside.

Tony casually directed his eyes toward his direction. Loki's shaky limbs could no longer hold their weight. He collapsed right there, on top of his blanket and received help from no one.

Tony was about to crawl to him, but saw that the collar was still there. Loki shook as much as he did the last time he had disappeared.

"Hey, Lokes?" Tony called out to him. "What's the problem?"

He wasn't moving, so Tony crept a little closer.

"Don't...you dare," Loki said. "I...am in...enough pain...already."

So Tony stayed put.

He felt no relief at the sight of Loki in front of him. Because, even though he was still there, really, how much of him was left?

And he, a supposed super hero, could do nothing.

"Hey, I..."

"Stark, please. I do not...wish to...speak...right now."

Tony sighed.

"Fine. That's fine. I wouldn't if I were in your shoes, either."

"You mean...there is something...in this world...that can keep...you from speaking?"

"Now, see here. I'm feeling all sorry for you and you still insult me? Even though you're in such bad shape?"

Loki grinned.

"I think I'm starting to like you."

"Is...that so?"

"_Might_. Just don't make me regret it."

"If you do...just remember...it was...your decision."

Tony rolled his eyes at him. A soft spot for the one called the god of lies and trickery and mischievous what nots.

_Got anymore bad ideas?_

Loki was happy to hear this. Though he still didn't like the idea of Tony thinking that they were friends, this could really work out for him. If Tony wasn't kidding, which he very well could have been. Making friends with an Avenger would have been laughable for someone like him to try. But Loki was nothing, if not flexible.

It was all about survival.

And he was doing a rather poor job of it at the moment.

He knew he was at his weakest. And that's usually when Innokenti struck. He liked it when Loki couldn't fight. When he could sneak in, smelling like alcohol, and had no problem with showing him that he owned him.

And there was nothing he could do about it.

"Stark?" Loki called out, feeling a bit queezy.

"Yeah?"

"Could you...do me a favor?"

"Depends."

"Could...you...guard...me?" he lowered his voice. "Please?"

"Guard you?"

"Yes. Until I...can get...some of my...strength back. I do...not wish...to be taken by them...while I can...do nothing."

He didn't answer right away. Loki looked up, wondering why. Tony had an unreadable expression on his face.

"Sure. Of course I'll guard you. If you'll do the same for me when you feel better."

Loki thought about it. Then nodded.

"Deal."


	12. Chapter 12

Whew, this is a long chapter. Had to go through a good bit of editing, too. I feel like my writing isn't at its best here, but I'm tired and I don't want to be stuck on fixing this forever. Hope you guys like it.

I'm sure all of you have seen the Thor 2 trailer. I'm so excited! I really need to see Iron Man 3. Knowing the plot and all, it's really starting to give me ideas for the later parts of this story. :)

Thank you all for reading, reviewing, and following!

* * *

It was raining in New York. Water tapped against the windows of Stark Tower, creating rivers down the glass. The clouds obscured the very top of the building, making the view outside hazy and nearly nonexistent.

She had everything spread over the dining room table, from files, to his hand written notes, to pictures. The mug in her hand was full of hot coffee. Sleep was a rarity, now. A luxury. There was no TV or music in the background to chase away the silence. Only the rain.

Pepper was never sure what she was looking for when she did this. Answers, sure, but what were the answers? That one word, E92, was not there. It was nowhere to be found, not even in Tony's notes. Perhaps it was floating around in an alternate universe and they were all losing their minds. Or perhaps it was just that, a file name, not the name of the project itself. A puzzle that only Tony knew how to solve.

Most of it was mathematical equations. It was complicated and she didn't understand what she was reading.

_"Ms. Potts, we think it would be in your best interest to take a leave of absence."_

She tapped her nails against the table. Flipping through the papers for plans that might not pan out. May not, might not.

Wouldn't.

Couldn't.

_She wasn't running behind. "I have too much to do to leave."_

There were drawings for updated flight stabilizers for his newest suit.

"We would make sure your work is taken care of."

Details for the arc reactor tech that was powering the building.

_"You're going through a hard time. It's not good for you to work this much."_

Late nights. Checking, double checking.

_"I'll consider it."_

_She'd just wanted him to leave her office._

Tony had a lot of things hidden. It frustrated her to no end.

He could be dead, for all she knew.

He could be dead.

She put the papers down a bit harder than she intended. This house was too empty. Too quiet. Pepper checked her phone and her e-mail. She had probably done that a hundred times since she had been home. No new messages.

Rhodey would call her as soon as there was any developement. He always did.

She hadn't been able to rid herself of that gnawing feeling in her gut. Growing and growing as weeks, days, hours past by.

"They haven't sent any videos today," Rhodey told her.

Her heart jumped with the most happy feeling she'd had in such a long time. Then, it lurched with dread.

Why would they suddenly stop sending the video feed?

No one had sent them the project file, so why? Why?

Another day had gone by. Rhodey told her the same thing.

Five days. Pepper broke down at work.

If Tony was dead...

She felt the tears gathering at the back of her eyes. They matched the rain.

"JARVIS," she called, voice thick and worn. "Do me a favor and lock everything up. I'm going out for a bit."

"Yes, Ms. Potts. Though I would hardly think this is the weather to be out in."

"I'll be fine. It's just a little rain," she wiped her eyes. "I'm starting to feel a little claustrophobic in here."

She grabbed her purse and called Happy. They would go to a nearby diner. She needed someone to talk to.

oooooooooooooooooo

Steve was the first out of the car when they arrive to the safe house. Clint rose from the passenger seat, following him to the door. Bruce was there before they even walked up the stairs.

"Hey guys," he smiled. "She's waiting for you inside."

"Good, good," Steve answered.

They all said their hellos. Mia was sitting on the couch, fiddling her fingers. Roberto was beside her, ever the protective one.

"So," she said. "What do you guys want to ask me?"

"Well, Thor and I kind of had a lead, when we were trying to find Tony. We ended up at your company and found something suspicious."

She narrowed her eyes.

"I went into the basement and saw two men with a machine that they said was an advanced life support machine."

"Oh, yes. That is a new project we are working on. I don't see how that is suspicious."

"Let me finish. Not only were they acting as though they didn't want me around there, but I found blood on the door frame. They tried to blow it off as mud, but I know that it wasn't."

"You're sure, Captain? It could have been anything, really. As for them not wanting you around, well, the machinery is new. They are told to be extra careful around it."

"Ms. Adessi, I'm sure you know we are just trying to be as thorough as possible. This is your life on the line as well as Tony's."

"I know."

"Mia," Clint said. "I mean, Ms. Adessi, you didn't have any problems with anyone inside the company, did you?"

Mia shook her head. "No, not at all. Well, not the way you're thinking."

"Any problem could be, well, a problem."

She rubbed the back of her neck. She was starting to get uncomfortable.

"Just a couple of people being stubborn, is all. I had a bit of a love affair with a guy, not too long ago. One over stepped their boundaries and tried to come in between us. She claimed it was for my own good."

"Who was this guy?" Steve asked.

"Uh, he was just someone I had met a while back. There were still a few feelings between us. It was just a one night stand. Or two."

Neither Clint or Steve felt that she was being completely honest.

"Are you trying to protect him? Sounds like your friend thought he was bad news. Or I could be wrong," Steve waited for her to answer.

"He wasn't bad news. He was charismatic and ambitious. Very smart, too."

Clint narrowed his eyes.

"Come on, Mia. We're the good guys, here. What are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding anything. We weren't supposed to be together, alright? He just needed a change, is all. He wasn't after me or my money, he just wanted the company. Not Adessi International, but _my company._ He just wanted to be with me."

"Why weren't you guys supposed to be together?"

"Look, you guys are supposed to protect me and find Tony. Why are you getting into my personal business? The guy I was with isn't at fault. I think you should just be able to take my word for it," she snapped.

The guys didn't bring it up again.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry if I'm prying a bit too much," Steve said. "But you mentioned you had a problem with a few others?"

Mia gathered herself and answered. "Yes. Some of my employees, as I've said, can be a bit stubborn. Nothing crazy, like to take over the company or anything. Just strong personalities."

"Can I have their names?"

"Roberto, could you bring me a pen and piece of paper? I'll write them down, so you don't forget."

Roberto did as he was asked. Mia handed the paper to Steve, after she had scribbled the names.

"Thank you," he said, folding it neatly before placing it in his pocket.

"Will that be all?" she asked in a steady voice that said 'That will be all.'

"Yes, for now."

They all rose from their seats. Bruce, Roberto, and Mia followed Steve and Clint to the door.

"I hope you all have a good day."

"You too," she smiled before going back through the house. Roberto followed closely.

"I wish you guys had gotten more helpful information," Bruce said. "But, maybe looking up these people will get us somewhere."

"I hope so."

"Hey, Bruce," Clint said, when he was sure Mia was far enough away. "Do us a favor and keep an eye on her."

"That's kind of what I'm already doing."

"No, I mean,_ keep an eye on her_."

"Oh, right. Gotcha."

"She starts acting weird, you call us and give us every detail, all right?"

Bruce rubbed his temples. "I'm hoping what you're insinuating is wrong, Clint."

"I am too," Steve said. "Because, if you're right, that means we've been duped."

"Yeah, well, I'm getting a bad vibe from that girl. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe she was just having an affair with a married guy or something and is embarrassed about it."

"But why would we care about that?" Bruce asked."

Steve narrowed his eyes.

"You don't think she slept with Tony, do you?"

"No," Clint and Bruce both disagreed.

"He's stuck by Pepper for, what, years now," Clint said. "That's like a lifetime of marriage for a reformed playboy."

"Yeah, he wouldn't do that to her."

"Not like he's the only charismatic, ambitious guy out there."

"That could be anyone, really."

"Besides, Pepper would cut his balls off if she found out."

"And he knows it."

"He's done some stupid things before, but he's not that stupid."

"Yeah, he's not that stupid."

No Tony wasn't that stupid.

Of course not.

oooooooooooooooooooo

The sandwich sat only half eaten on the table. Pepper stirred the ice around the Coke with her straw. Caffeine just wasn't doing its job that day.

"You haven't been eating enough," Happy observed.

"Haven't had the stomach for it."

"You still have to take care of yourself, Ms. Potts. You're running yourself into the ground."

"I'll be fine, Happy," she leaned back in the chair. "Tony has JARVIS so locked up, no one can get to what we need. He did that because he was afraid of people using his technology against him. Now, they're still using it against him and we can't help."

She buried her face in her hands.

"I feel like I'm doing nothing."

"You're keeping his company afloat."

She scoffed at that.

"I don't think that matters as much as being able to get him out of there."

Happy reached over and patted her on the shoulder.

"I wish I could figure out his suit. I'd go over there and break him out myself."

"I have no doubt you would."

Her phone started to ring. She quickly answered it before it had a chance to ring again.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Pepper," Rhodey spoke on the other line. "I've got news."

Her stomach flipped. "Good or bad?"

"Well, our friend just sent us another video, so it's not good. Unless you want to see it that way, since it proves Tony's still alive."

"They sent another video," she said to Happy, hand over the mouth piece, before speaking to Rhodey again. "How bad is it?"

He paused before answering. "It's pretty bad."

_Don't cry. Don't. Cry._

"And what about the suspects?"

"We were able to get some information from one. Nothing that would incriminate her. She was able to describe some of the tech she and Tony were working on. I could definitely see it doing some serious damage, if it got into the wrong hands. I can't disclose it over the phone. But it had something to do with that voodoo that Thor's brother and his alien army were using."

"So that's what it is."

"That's what it might be. You remember that Thor said something about the enemy using that magic."

"Right," she pinched the bridge of her nose. More destructive magic. That was not good.

"We let everyone go, after questioning. We had no reason to keep them in custody. But she did tell us about one other person that was working with them."

She was just about to find out. But, she didn't hear what he had to say. Outside of the diner, there was a loud boom. An explosion. Happy pushed her to the floor, trying to get her out of the way.

The peace in the city had ended.

ooooooooooooooooooooo

Blood dripped down Tony's face from his newest wound. Two things, today. A knife and a lighter. So when he could describe the feeling as being on fire, he wasn't exactly exaggerating.

"Smile for the camera, Mr. Stark," Innokenti smiled, putting the small flame against Tony's back.

This is what they woke him up for.

Tony glanced up at the camera, wondering what was taking them so long to find him.

Three months in Afghanistan. It was possible he would be with these wonderful people much longer.

To make matters worse, Innokenti cut into the burn with the knife. Pain flooded his brain.

"I suppose they don't care that much about you. No one has given me what I want, yet."

He gave Tony another burn and again, used the knife on that spot. Lather, rinse and repeat.

"You'd better hurry," Innokenti directed toward the camera. "I don't know how much longer he can take this."

The room spun around him. The blood from his forehead made a line down the side of his face.

His nerves seemed to have become hypersensitive. Prickling at the very ends, just waiting for it.

Innokenti would sometimes take a break. Rubbing the blood in between his fingers, seemingly fascinated by it.

Tony took a deep breath, trying to clear his head. He shook almost as bad as Loki.

"I need to ask you something," he tried to stay calm. His voice was hoarse.

Innokenti looked up at him.

"Why do you do this? Besides for the project files. How can you do this to people?"

His tormentor smirked and lifted an eyebrow.

Innokenti put his elbows on his knees and looked as though he was actually giving it some thought.

"It's fun."

He chuckled.

_It's fun._

How could someone think this was fun?

"There is something seriously wrong with you."

"Are you trying to hurt my feelings, Mr. Stark?" he asked, the smile growing on his face.

"Do you have any?"

"Maybe," he patted Tony's cheek.

And then, continued his fun.

ooooooooooooooooo

Mia quietly went into her bedroom, so she could be alone for a while. This event was tiring. She wished she could just go to sleep and discover in the morning that this was all a bad dream.

But, no. She would not be so lucky.

Her hand went to her belly. Things had gotten out of hand. Too much was at stake.

The phone sat on the night table. She reached for it, feeling nauseated. It was too early to blame it on morning sickness.

She sat patiently for the person on the other line to answer. They didn't. A five minute wait, then a redial. Two rings, then:

"What is it?"

"I don't want to do this anymore."

"A bit late for that, don't you think?"

"They're getting close to figuring it out, Innokenti," she whispered. "They'll know what I did and it's too much."

"You are not going to mess this up, for me. Especially not because you're a little nervous."

"Please, the magic isn't important anymore. We'll find other means of clean energy."

He chuckled. "This is about a lot more than your company's need to save the world."

"You went too far when you kidnapped Tony. You weren't supposed to hurt anyone! And why is there blood all over my basement? What did you do?"

"A minor setback, is all."

"A setback? That's what you want to call it?"

"Oh, so now you worry about the little prince? You said I wasn't supposed to hurt anyone, yet you turned away when you found out what your machines were doing to him. Not that I care. I rather enjoy him when he's quiet and stops squirming around so much."

"I know it hurt him, but we were trying to fix that! I was looking into it!"

"Doesn't change anything, Ms Adessi," he said in a mocking sing song voice.

Mia tried to find the words to proclaim her innocence. It was for the good of the world. She didn't know that their machinery would hurt him so badly.

"I'll tell them where you've hidden them," she said defiantly. "You may have the rest of the country afraid, but what can you do against the Avengers?"

"You might not want to do that. I have no problem bringing you down with me. Besides, with what we've gotten our hands on, I can give your band of heroes a run for their money."

Pale hands shook, barely able to keep a hold on the phone.

"Oh, and it looks like our show is about to start."

Before she even had the chance to ask what he meant, he hung up.

And, not a couple of seconds later, Roberto burst into her room.

"Mia, there's been another attack."

How she was up and next to him so quickly, she would never know.

"Where? What happened?"

"It's not us, this time. It's New York."

oooooooooooooooo

Innokenti smirked as he left the phone where he'd laid it. Confidence was his friend. He had nothing to worry about. Not a lot, anyway.

But that woman. That stupid, paranoid woman. She could tell them where he and his prisoners were. That was something he was not going to have. He was a master at his work.

He would not be caught.

So, he developed a plan.

He would give the people what they wanted and he knew exactly what that was.

His prize was tucked away, right where they had left him. Still shaking underneath his favorite, scratchy blanket. Tony had been left, chained to the chair. He would let him stay there a while longer. After all, he would just get in the way.

He stood on the other side of the cage, watching Loki as he slept. Enthralled by him. Sometimes, he just had to stop what he was doing and marvel at the person before him. Whether it was on the security camera or in person. How such a seemingly frail thing, with his pale skin and dark, wild waves of hair, could have so much power running through his veins.

He noticed that Loki was biting his bottom lip. Pain? Nightmares? Both?

Either way, it showed his discomfort and that was something that Innokenti enjoyed. When he told Tony that this was fun, he wasn't lying.

He rattled the door of the cage, scaring him awake.

Loki looked at him. Wary.

"What's wrong? Aren't you happy to see me?" he teased.

Despite the shaking, Loki tried to remain calm and defiant. His green eyes were cold. But he couldn't help but grasp the ends of his blanket

"Did you not enjoy the last time I visited you? You know you're my favorite prisoner. You're quite special to me."

Loki blamed the dizzying weakness on his illness. He would not be intimidated.

He would not be.

Innokenti opened the door. As he walked in, Loki wished they had left Tony there with him. But, who was he kidding? Thinking that he had the strength to fight him? If he did, he wouldn't have been there in the first place.

"I have a job for you."

Loki took a deep breath. "And...what would...that...be?"

Innokenti grabbed his arm, still sore from being poked with those needles, and led him out of the room, down the hall.

Loki tried to pull away from him. "What...are you doing? Let me go!"

"Oh, shut up."

He took Loki to a different room. One that he had never been in. It looked like a control room, with many TVs showing footage of several places within the building. He never knew that these people held so many other prisoners. All of them desparate and much too thin. Many had dark eyes that had given up on life. They looked so tired and ill. Loki wondered if he looked as bad as they did.

But then, there was Tony.

He sat in a chair. Handcuffed to it. His head was low and he was covered in wounds.

Loki snatched his arm away. He found he could still not hold his weight, so sat down in the corner, like he was pretty much trained to do.

"All right. Why am I...here?"

"Give me a minute," Innokenti searched through the computer in front of him.

Loki folded his arms, feeling more annoyed by the second.

"Here it is," Innokenti finally finished his search.

_Took you long enough._

"I'm going to make a call to Mr. Stark's friends."

Loki lifted an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"I need to call together a meeting and I want you to talk to them."

"Again...why?"

"You're going to have to talk better than that, if I'm going to put you on the phone with them. You sound terrible."

"I don't want...to speak to them."

"You don't have a choice. Now, when I give you the phone, I want you to give them a sense of urgency. That they do as you say and hand over the project files or else, Mr. Stark will be in much worse shape than he already is."

"You can't tell...them yourself?"

"No. Why would I, when I can let the world's most wanted criminal take the blame for me?"

To go after him, while he slipped away, unnoticed. Sure, they would want him as well, but he would already have a head start on them while they were busy catching Loki.

"I won't...do it."

Innokenti stepped toward him, grabbing his chin harshly.

"You _will_ do it."

The trembling in his hands. The flame in his eyes. Loki didn't push his luck. The man was prone to be unreasonably violent when he was angry.

"Fine. Fine, whatever you want."

Innokenti let him go, keeping his eyes on him as he dialed the phone.

Loki rubbed his chin, feeling rather humiliated.

Natasha was the one who answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Natasha."

She sucked in a breath, recognizing the voice.

"Is this Innokenti?"

"Very good! You remember me."

"Guys," she said to the boys, who were sitting at the back of the room, comparing notes. "We've got Innokenti on the line."

They sat up in attention.

"What is this?" Clint asked. "What does he want?"

Natasha put her finger to her lips to shush him. Then, she put the phone on speaker, so everyone could hear.

"We're not playing anymore games," she said. "You're not getting anything from us."

"Is that so? I wonder how the people in New York would feel, if the heard you say that?"

"The people in New York?"

"Yes. A gift, to help them remember the destruction from the invasion, a couple of years ago."

"He attacked them?" Thor asked.

"Not again," Steve said. "Not again, not _again_."

"You need to stop this," Natasha said, gruffly. "You have no right to keep doing this to innocent people."

"And you know all about that, don't you Natalia?"

Suddenly, she felt very self conscious in front of her team mates.

"That's not going to work. I left that in the past."

"How cute. I didn't think you of all people would end up on their side."

"Cut the small talk."

"That's fine with me. Let's get down to business. The reason I called is because my boss would like to have a few words with you. He's missed you all so very much."

They already had a feeling who it was. The evidence had been clear. Thor looked especially stressed.

"Here," Innokenti whispered to Loki, shoving the phone in his face.

Loki gritted his teeth and took it.

"Don't you dare mess this up."

Loki took a couple of deep breaths. He tried to control his shaking and get his mind straight.

"Hello?" he said, cringing at how nervous and child-like he sounded.

"Hello?" Natasha said. She seemed unsure that she was talking to the right person.

And it all came back to him. A mischievous grin spread over his face as he remembered her. Bright red hair burst into his mind.

"Ms. Romanoff. How I've missed you, darling."

Clint shifted in his chair. Loki. That was Loki. _That was Loki._

Thor pressed his face into his hands. Steve's hands balled into fists.

"I thought you were supposed to be locked up somewhere?" Natasha again.

"You should know by now that nothing can hold me."

"I've noticed."

"So, where shall I start? Oh yes. I need the project file, which of course, you already know. Unfortunately, we seem to be at a stale mate."

"Apparently."

"We've done quite a bit of damage to your city, yet you still won't budge. I guess you just don't care much about all of the people who've just been hurt. But, why would I be surprised? You don't even care about your supposed friend."

"You shut your mouth!" a voice from the background. His mind was a bit fuzzy on who that one was. All he could remember was a bunch of gaudy stars and stripes.

"Isn't it...true?" Loki could feel the room spinning around him. He shuddered. It took all of his will power to come across as strong and confident. "Stark is in so much pain, right now. He's losing hope. He doesn't think you care. And it turns out that he's right. You're leaving him to die because you're all so selfish. And you call yourselves heroes."

There was a commotion. A crash and someone yelling for someone else to calm down.

Chaos.

"You just love this, don't you?" Natasha said. "You think you can goad us on like that?"

"Well, it sounds like...I'm succeeding," the pains inside were building up again.

He thought he could hear Thor asking Natasha to let him speak to him. Actually, it was more like, 'let me speak to my _brother_'.

Anger added to agony was not a good combination.

"And you can tell Thor that he might regret using that word around me."

"You might regret denying him. After all, I can't see why he still wants to claim you. But he seems to be your only hope, as of this moment."

"I'll take my chances. However, we are getting off track. The question is, who's going to make the first move?"

"Both of us."

"And what do you mean by that?"

Natasha sighed. "Too many people are getting hurt. It's not worth it. We'll give you the project file."

Loki had to admit, that took him by surprise.

"Is that...so? You'll just hand it over?"

"Only if you give us Tony in return"

"Was that not our deal?"

"Just know this, if you don't hold too your end of the bargain, Bruce will happily send the Other Guy after you. I know you remember him."

"Yes. Quite," that green, hulking creature. As if Loki wasn't sore enough.

"Keep that in mind."

"Don't you trust me?" Loki smiled again, even though she couldn't see him.

"As far as I can throw you."

Loki did chuckle that time, though he regretted it soon afterward. He couldn't help but let out a whimper, though he covered it up by holding his hand over the phone's mouth piece and coughing.

He could practically feel Innokenti glaring at him.

"So, where are we going to do this?"

"You choose."

Loki looked at Innokenti for help.

"The warehouse," he whispered.

"The warehouse," Loki repeated.

"Tonight?"

"Tomorrow."

"Sure."

The call could have ended there. But Loki had been under someone else's boot for so long, he had to show them that he was in charge.

Even though it was all pretend.

"Now, allow me to make my threats, Ms. Romanoff. You _will_ hold up your end of the bargain. All of you. Is your little birdy there?"

"Where Barton is, is none of your business."

He had made her falter. He could hear it in her voice.

"He's there, isn't he? Well, let me tell you something. If you dare try to fool me, I will find him. I will find him and put him through much worse than I have before. He must have nightmares of me. I know he does. I can manipulate his dreams and realities. I will make him live in a world of nightmares from which he won't know what is real and what isn't."

Thor once again asked for the phone. No, not asked, demanded.

And there was no hint of him calling him "brother".

"You stay away from him."

All of this encouraged him.

"And Stark, oh I've saved the best for him. He will suffer. He will beg for me to kill him. But I won't. No, that would be too easy. I will torture him," he paused. They probably thought it was for dramatic effect. But he could barely heave the words out as weakness and pain began to overwhelm him.

"Slowly."

Deep breath.

"Intimately."

The sharpness from his stomach seeped into his mind.

"In every which way he fears."

He wrapped his arms around himself, holding the phone to his ear with his shoulder.

"That is _my_ bargain, _darling_."

This time the noise that came from Thor wasn't even a demand. That was too polite of a word to describe it. It was a "give me the blankety, blank, blank, phone!"

"You are disgusting."

"Well, if that's what you want to call it. I'll see you tomorrow. I've been wanting to see your pretty face."

And with that, he hung up. The end of his show. So, he let the phone fall to the ground at the same time as he. Shuddering and shaking.

Full body cramps? Check.

Nauseating dizziness? Check.

Pure misery? Yes, that too.

But he did it.

He did it.

Innokenti stepped toward him. Loki looked up, thinking he would get some sort of amazed disbelief at his talents.

A kick in the ribs. That, he was not expecting.

Loki gasped, coughing. He was hurting already! He didn't need that!

He questioned Innokenti with his eyes.

_Why?_

"You are pathetic!" Innokenti tried to kick him again, but he rolled out of his way in time.

"That woman is one of the world's greatest spies! You have completely ruined this!"

"I know who...she is! How did I ruin it?"

Innokenti grabbed Loki's hair, pulling him onto his back until he was laying underneath him. His shaking wasn't from being sick, this time.

"Anyone would be able to tell how weak you are! All of that weezing and whimpering! None of them will take you seriously!"

He punched him in the face.

"They won't see you as dangerous!"

He punched him again.

"You're nothing but a sniveling, weak minded joke of whatever it is that you are!"

He punched him some more. Loki tried to hide his face with his arms.

"I tried!" he yelled, trying to get him to be reasonable again. "I tried to hide it! I don't think she noticed! She said she would meet us and hand over the files! Please, listen to me!"

Innokenti didn't stop. He continued his abuse until he was tired.

When he calmed down, he let Loki go. He went over to the desk where the computer was and grabbed something out of one of the drawers.

It was an instant meal. Rice?

_What is he _doing?

He opened the bowl and poured it in a pile on the floor. Some of the dry grains rolled toward Loki.

"You had better hope it's not a trick. Come here."

Loki dragged himself to his feet and walked to him. Any need to be stubborn had disappeared. He had been through much worse than being punched in the face a few times, but that was exactly _it_. Just because Innokenti had calmed down momentarily didn't mean he wouldn't freak out again.

Causing him to do something much worse.

Innokenti pointed at the mound of rice and said, "Kneel."

Loki did as he was told. He kneeled, trying keep as much weight off of his knees as possible. Either way, the tiny, hard grains pressed against them, digging against the skin. The baggy pants he was wearing didn't do much to protect them.

Loki wiped his bloody nose.

Innokenti sat down in the chair, watching him.

_I really hope I'm right._


	13. Chapter 13

Loki and Mia...they really put their trust in the wrong person. He's taking them for a ride and they've realized it too late.

You dummies.

Next chapter! Basically, everything is getting worse.

Thank you all for the support, as always! :)

* * *

Pepper couldn't hear herself scream over the blasts. Glass was blown everywhere, people were ducking and panicking. Happy was over her, acting as a shield. But that didn't stop her from bumping the back of her head.

After opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was blood on her hands and the floor, turning a light color from mixing with the rain water.

"Happy!" she cried out. "Happy!"

"It's okay, Ms. Potts," he said. "I'm right here."

He was sitting beside her with cuts on his face and arms. She could hardly hear him from the ringing in her ears. Planting her palms firmly against the floor, she pushed herself up. Glass covered the floor. Others around them slowly started to stand and come out from behind tables. Some were asking if everyone was okay.

"What was that?" Happy asked.

No one answered. They didn't know, themselves.

"It looks like someone's outside," a woman behind him said. "They're hurt!"

Before anyone could even make a move to help, there was another blast. They all ducked, covering their faces, some brave souls pushing loved ones behind them.

It was slightly farther away, but it still shook the building, sending a gust of rain inside.

"It's terrorists!" another screamed. "They're attacking us!"

A few tried to run toward the door, but were stopped by others who were unsure if it was safe outside.

Sirens were in the background. There were sounds of pain.

"I'm going out," Happy said. "The people outside really need help."

"Happy, we don't know if there will be another bomb!" Pepper said rather loudly, her ears still giving her trouble.

"Pepper, they're hurt! We need to do something."

He wobbled to his feet. Pepper tried to stand, vertigo and slippery floors making it difficult.

"You stay in here," Happy said to her.

"No. I'm coming with you."

A couple of others were already surrounding one person on the sidewalk. There was someone else sitting on the ground. Blood was smeared across his forehead and he looked dazed. Happy went directly to him.

Pepper attempted to follow him, but couldn't walk in a straight line. She went to the wall of the diner, trying to keep herself steady.

"Ma'am, are you okay?"

Turning toward the muffled voice, she answered, "I'm not sure."

"Here, you should sit down."

The person held her hand and placed his own on her back to help her sit.

"Are you in any pain?"

"No. I don't think so."

Her heart was pounding and black spots were at the edge of her vision.

"Ma'am, your head is bleeding."

She closed her eyes, giving in to unconciousness.

oooooooooooooooooooooo

It was small and light grey. The Stark Industries logo was lightly carved on its surface. One could easily lose it, if they weren't careful.

Natasha turned it over with her fingers. This was what people were dying and getting hurt over. This tiny thing.

Steve and Clint had retreated from the room. Clint suddenly wasn't feeling well and wanted to be left alone. Steve wanted to see if he could get something out of their captive. He had been seething at Loki's words. The fact that someone would dare say they didn't care about his best friend wasn't sitting well with him.

So, that left her and Thor. He was sitting at the table, forehead pressed against his hands with his long hair covering his face. He hadn't moved or said a word since the phone call. Not even when Natasha had gone to get one of the techies to make the computer chip. She felt bad for him. He loved Loki so much, yet he was always betrayed by him.

"Thor," she said.

"Yes?"

"I'm really sorry about this."

He shrugged. "It is all right."

_No. It's not. I can tell._

She replayed the phone conversation in her head. His voice had the same venom in it as it had when she talked to him on the helicarrier. Even though she couldn't see him, it unnerved her just as much now as it did then.

And so did Innokenti's.

Still, something about the whole exchange just seemed...off. Despite Loki's fearsome determination, he didn't sound so good. His breathing was heavy, even though he seemed to be trying to hide it.

And that "hello". He sounded so unlike himself.

"I wish we could help the people at home," Thor said. "I mean, in New York."

"There was another explosion not long ago," Natasha said. "This one was near Malibu."

Thor groaned.

"But we're helping now. We're close to getting Loki and Innokenti. Tony will be home. Then, we'll go back and fix what's broken."

"Do you truly believe this will work?" Thor looked up long enough to point to the chip in her hand.

"Well, I think there's a fifty percent chance of it working."

"And if they check to see if it is the real thing?"

"We'll attack before they get the chance."

He smirked. "So this is a punch first, ask questions later sort of plan. I believe I like this."

Natasha laughed. But it disappeared when she saw just how sad his eyes were.

For someone who was so large and terrifying, he had a sad face that could break even the coldest person's heart.

"What are you going to do with Loki?" she asked.

"Whatever I need to do."

"He sounded like he wasn't one hundred percent. Makes me wonder what happened to him."

"Aye. I noticed that as well."

"But of course, Fury said that when he first came to Earth, he looked horrible. And it didn't change the fact that he was still very dangerous."

"Loki's mind is what is most dangerous about him. He is one to plan ahead. We have always underestimated him. I will never make that mistake again."

"Which is why I'm only fifty percent sure this will work."

"I just feel as though this is too easy. We give them the chip and they give us Anthony. I know that this is what they said they would do from the beginning, but I just have a bad feeling that something else will be waiting for us."

"Don't jinx us, Thor," she smiled. "But yeah, I know what you mean."

"I worry for our brothers," Thor leaned back in the chair. "I don't believe I have ever seen the captain so angry. And Barton didn't seem well at all."

"Can Loki really warp realities?"

"Unfortunately, yes. His practice isn't perfect, but with the amount of time that has passed, I don't know how well he has gotten at it."

Natasha clinched a fist around the tiny object in her hand.

"If Loki lays one finger on Clint, I'll kill him."

She didn't look at Thor. She didn't care for his reaction. She had her own family to protect.

"I have no doubt you will try."

"Do you think I can't do it?"

"It takes a lot to kill one of us."

Well, that was certainly true.

"I used to think if I could just talk to him and figure out what was wrong, I could help him," Thor continued. "I did not want to admit to myself that he may just be too far gone."

"So now you really do believe that he can't be helped."

"Unfortunately, yes. It makes me sick to think of what they've done to Stark. I love my brother, but he is not the man he used to be. If it comes down to it...well, let us just say that Anthony is the priority here."

He was unwavering in his words. The circles under his eyelids spoke of the nights he had spent awake, coming to his decision.

Natasha walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders and setting her chin on top of his darkened hair.

He softly smiled at her.

"What is this for?"

"Clint says it's an inner pain reliever," she chuckled. "You could use more of these, you know."

He wrapped his fingers around her wrist. A tight hold, begging for reassurance.

"Thank you, Natasha. I really needed that."

She smiled sympathetically, patting him on the shoulder.

"You should go to bed. We have a long day ahead of us."

"A good day, because we will have Anthony back."

"Yes, so we'll have to have a lot of energy to celebrate afterward."

ooooooooooooooooo

Tony didn't even look up when the door opened. He didn't care anymore. He was getting used to his clothes sticking to his skin, thanks to the blood.

Really, it was something he shouldn't have to get used to.

"Did you miss me?" Innokenti asked.

Tony said all that was needed with his eyes.

"Sorry. Had to visit my dear prince. I haven't been giving him the attention he was used to. I didn't want him to get jealous."

Loki. Yeah, he was supposed to be guarding him. Though he wasn't even doing a good job of taking care of himself.

Innokenti put his hand on Tony's shoulder. He tried to shrug it away, but was unsuccessful.

"I have a surprise for you."

Nothing pleasant, he was sure.

"Your friends are coming to get you."

Tony quickly looked up. He searched his captor's face. Was he lying?

Or was this nightmare finally over?

"They're coming here?" he asked, almost breathlessly.

"Well, not here exactly. I agreed to meet with them. They were smart and decided to give me what I want."

His stomach sank.

"What?"

"They said they would, anyway. I don't trust them, though. Do you think I should trust them?"

This was a trick. Whether they were really going to meet with Innokenti or not, that question had too much weight to it.

The real question was, what was his best answer?

Did he say that he trusts them to bring the real program? Did they actually have it?

No. He didn't believe a word of it.

So what was he supposed to do?

"They are the most trustworthy people I have ever met," Tony chose each word carefully.

"Of course they are, to you. Can _I_ trust them?"

_He's playing a game. Don't let him get to you._

But what if he gave him an answer he didn't want to hear?

What if he thought he was lying?

What were the consequences?

What would happen if he told him to trust them and they didn't have the program?

"How do I know I can trust you?" he blurted out. "So far, you haven't given me any evidence that you wouldn't lie about this."

"You're beating around the bush, Mr. Stark."

"I want proof. One thing my work has shown me is to never accept anything without proof."

"Ask the liar."

"The liar?"

The gears in his brain made quick work of it. Who else would he be talking about except for the extraterrestrial mess in the cage?

"Yes, he had quite the conversation with them not long ago. Quite the sight, he was. He scares even me."

Loki talked to the Avengers. He spoke with his friends. He had no business talking to them unless he was begging for help.

And he knew that wasn't the case.

"I don't go on words alone. I just told you that."

"Yes, of course. Proof."

He pulled a recorder from his pocket.

Tony's face fell.

The sound quality was terrible, but despite the muffled noise, Loki's voice was recognizable. His words were cruel. Tony bit the inside of his cheek when he heard what he said about Clint.

What he said about _him._

It made his blood run cold.

They weren't friends. Not even close. But they were on the same side, in this case. It was them against all of the others. That was what helped him through this, the fact that he wasn't alone. He had a comrade. Keeping an eye on him, even though he couldn't actually do much, was something that gave him a bit of purpose.

All of that, just to find out that he really _was_ alone?

He had been in close quarters with an enemy this whole time.

Loki had said they must have put Tony with him to torture him. Turns out it was the other way around.

But why was he surprised, really? This was Loki they were talking about. He should have expected something like this.

Innokenti had a solemn look on his face. It was so fake.

"Betrayal is a terrible thing, isn't it?"

Oh, yes it was.

"Loki has been commanding us to do this to you the entire time," he continued. "Staying in that cage with you, pretending to be so hurt and sick, was all just to toy with you. A little gift for ruining his chances to rule this world."

Revenge.

That was an awfully complex revenge plot.

Tony tried to get a hold of himself before his anger got out of control.

"You told me before that you hurt him so much, he tried to starve himself. You pretty much hinted that you had raped him on top of everything else. That was a lie?"

"Yes."

"That's a sick thing to lie about."

"Sometimes you have to do some extreme things to get what you want."

That was an understatement. When they tried to escape, he threw Loki so hard against the wall, it made his head bleed. The coal he had burned his tongue with was smoking with heat. Tony had seen the top layer of skin peel off of it when Loki spit it out. That was real.

But then, he had said he could manipulate reality when he was talking to Natasha.

But his magic...and the arc reactor...and just the entire escape plot...

Was it fake?

Or was Innokenti the one lying? He just admitted to lying, so it was possible.

Tony was in too much pain to deal with this. It was giving him a headache.

"I'm terribly sorry about you finding out about this."

"No you're not!" Tony snapped. "You just love this. It's fun for you to watch people squirm as you manipulate them. I'm sick of your games! I'll tell you one thing, you are not going to get the best of me!"

"Okay."

"And that's the only thing you say! 'Okay'!"

"Yes."

Tony was fuming. His anger was so red, he could see it in the corners of his eyes. If he were free, he wasn't even sure what he would do. Only that he would bring that man pain.

"You know, I do believe that it's time for you to go back to your little home."

And he was taking him back, now?

How dare he?

"My friends," Innokenti opened the door and called for some of the guards. "Take Mr. Stark back to his room, please."

They unlocked his hand cuffs, unchaining him from the chair. He didn't struggle. No, he wasn't going to attack yet. He would have his day. Yes he would.

And Innokenti would regret ever laying a hand on him.

oooooooooooooooooo

Loki was so tired of that cage. There was no way to get comfortable in his miserable state. He was sure he had sores due to the concrete. His knees were killing him after spending so much time in that little rice pile.

Said knees were pulled up to his chest, serving as a resting spot for his chin. Despite being rolled up into a ball, he felt no relief in his stomach. Or in his anything, really. Too much time had passed. They had taken too much of his magic too many times. He was beginning to lose hope of escaping at all. Even if he did, what would he do? He doubted there were healers on Earth who could take care of this problem. His best hope would probably be to go back home. And he knew, that wasn't an option. Not if he wanted to keep his freedom.

Besides, the thought of going to the healers made his bones quake. But it wasn't the typically gentle doctors that made him feel queezy with fear. It was what they would find.

He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to calm himself. It couldn't be that bad, could it? After all, he was still here, right?

The familiar sounds of feet in the hallway arose. As he expected, Tony was brought in.

However, Tony looked...pissed.

And the sheer anger in his brown eyes were directed at Loki.

Loki growled under his breath, dramatically rolling his eyes. What wrongs did he do this time?

The drone wore a big smile as he left the men alone. What was he so happy about?

Despite the blood that seeped through his clothes, Tony didn't go to his corner in a weakened slump. He stood there in front of Loki with clenched fists and flaring nostrils. Actually the blood made him look a bit maniacal.

"You look well," Loki said.

"You better find a way to defend yourself."

"Excuse me?"

"What? Did I not speak clearly enough for you to understand? I said you better find a way to defend yourself, because you have one chance to convince me not to seriously hurt you."

Loki shook his head and chuckled.

"Stark, go sit down. You don't even...have the ability to hurt anyone. Even with...the state I'm in, the worst you could do...is trip and fall on top of me."

"Is that so?" Tony stepped closer to him. "Is that collar still working?"

Right. The collar.

Loki narrowed his eyes.

"I don't think you'll do it."

"Are you sure you want to test that theory?" Tony took another step.

Loki quickly scrambled to his feet, one hand on the collar, one out in front of him.

"Stark, think about...what you're doing."

"I've thought long and hard about it. You came down to our world and tried to destroy it. You wanted to take it for yourself with no regard for anyone else. Why would you suddenly change? Huh? Isn't that your thing? Manipulating people?"

"Well, yes. I still don't see what you're getting at."

Unless...

"Wait. Did Innokenti...talk to you?"

"Yeah, he did. He told me that this whole thing was fake. That you were pretending to be hurt and sick and you were the one that decided to stay in here with me so you could trick me. He said you were the mastermind behind this whole thing. You wanted revenge and this was how you planned to get it!"

"What?" Loki laughed out of disbelief. "Did he give...you a concussion before telling you this? After everything that has happened, you just run off and believe...every word that comes out of his mouth? I thought you were supposed...to be smart."

"I heard you!" Tony's voice bounced off the walls, filling the small room. "I heard what you said to them! It was a recording and I heard you!"

Of course. Yeah, that was exactly the kind of thing Innokenti would do. Bored? Why not start a civil war between the prisoners?

"Stark, you're going to have to listen...to me."

"Why? So you can tell me more lies?"

"You said you would give me a chance to...defend myself. Of course I...plan to take it. Or did you...forget so quickly?"

Tony stopped speaking. The veins in his arms were visible and his eyes were watery. This was a man driven wild.

Anger, terror. Kill or be killed. Or, at least, a sad attempt at it.

"I am in...the same position you are in. One could say that I have had it worse...because I have been here much longer than you. This man has...a sick mind. He will do things to people that...even I wouldn't dare. You cannot let him mess with your...mind like this. Now, with that being said, the recording you heard...was real. I did say those things, but..." Loki held up a finger when Tony was about to interrupt. "I said them because I was trying...to survive. Don't you dare let him tell you...that my pain is fake. I do not...want to die here. I will do what I...must to live another day. If that means making a few 'heroes'...nervous, then so be it. I did nothing wrong."

"You did nothing wrong? Do you have any idea the trauma Clint has gone through because of you? Do you even care how many people are still in pain because of you? Innokenti is not the only person in here that has done terrible things!"

"No. He is not."

They stared each other down. Tony smirked when he understood where Loki was going with that.

"Oh, you're trying to turn the tables on me, now. Okay I see. Yeah, I built weapons. In a sense, I still do. I had no accountability for what I was doing. I wasn't paying close enough attention to where everything was going and what people were doing with it. But you know what happened? I changed. I refused to let business men, politicians and terrorists use my technology to kill innocent people. I took control and used it to save them. What did you do? You told a man who was getting over his own personal demons that you would pretty much throw him back into it. You betrayed your brother, someone you don't even deserve, once again. You told them that they were selfish, when you are the most self centered person I have ever met. And then, you said you would torture me? 'After everything that has happened', as you put it."

Loki crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. He had a slight smirk that made Tony's temper flare even more.

"Let's say Innokenti told you to kill me. Or to actually torture me the way he did. Would you do it in order to survive?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know. That's wonderful. I'll keep that in mind."

"Seems like you...haven't changed that much."

"If I hadn't, I'd be right there next to you, watching you writhe on the floor."

"How dirty of you," his smirk grew.

"You think this is funny?"

"No."

"I don't know which one of you is lying. Mr. I Can Manipulate Realities."

Loki had a feeling saying that would come back to bite him.

"I told you...what happened. Whether you choose to believe it, well, that's up to you," Loki edged around him. "I'm surprised you...haven't tried to blame me for magically blowing up your precious city again. But, whoops, I would have to have magic to...do that, wouldn't I?"

Tony froze. All anger melted from his face to form into confusion.

"What did you say?"

"You heard what I said. I am exhausted and do not wish...to repeat myself," he eased himself back to the floor, rolling into the blanket like a hotdog.

"New York...there was...they...there was a bomb?"

"Did he leave that part out? How convenient."

Tony felt the air being constricted from his lungs. He had to reach out to the wall to keep his balance.

"No. No, he didn't. They...did you?"

"No. I have my own crisis to worry about. I had no reason to blow them up. You humans are the least of my worries."

Tony tried to gasp for air, but couldn't get enough. He shook, sweat beginning to run down his brow. It was exactly like those late nights back at home.

Home.

Where Happy, Rhodey, and Pepper were.

Where Pepper was.

No.

No.

No.

No.

No.

"No, God, no," was all Tony could get out.

Loki was curious by his sudden reaction.

By now, Tony was on his knees, leaning over with his head against the floor. His shoulders shook. His breathing was even more uneven.

Was he crying?

He wrapped his arms over his head, sobs escaping him.

Yeah, he was definitely crying.

"Stark?"

Loki sat up.

Tony's distress didn't lessen. It seemed to increase.

Loki may have gone over the deep end. But, unlike Innokenti, seeing a grown man cry made him uncomfortable.

"Stark?" he tried again. "Are you...okay?"

"No." Tony managed to yell. "How could I be okay?"

Loki shifted.

"Um, it's going...to be all right. I'm sure it...will. Can you please...stop crying?"

Wow, that had to have been the worse consolation that Tony had ever heard. He wondered if he was that bad when he tried to comfort Pepper.

Pepper. Just the thought of her made him cry even harder.

"Anthony...I'm sorry. Okay? There, I said it. I don't want...your city to burn. I really don't."

"So, you lied about that?" Tony sniffled, bitter, yet hopeful.

"No. I just said...I didn't want it to happen. Not if it's...going to turn you into...that."

Hope crashed and burned. But New York was a big city. The bomb might not have been anywhere near them.

Who was he kidding? This was Innokenti he was talking about.

Whether it was any of his loved ones or not, there was still death. And pain.

It was because of him and he could do nothing to stop it.

And there Cat Woman was, staring at him with those big, innocent eyes. Either oddly concerned or giving an Oscar worthy performance.

"Stop looking at me like that," Tony said between sobs. His voice was thick.

"Fine, fine. I am sorry."

Tony tried to wipe the tears from his eyes. It didn't help. They were like ocean waves when the levees broke.

_Pepper. Happy. I'm so sorry. I was supposed to keep you safe and I failed at that. Rhodey, I just hope that you had gotten to your suit in time. Please, please have gotten to your suit._

_I'm so sorry._

_I'm so sorry._


	14. Chapter 14

I had read through all of my other chapters, trying to make sure I didn't start creating plot holes. And, to put it lightly, I don't like the writing, so much. Not of the earlier ones, at least.

I'm really picky, yeah. And my picky tendencies made writing this horrible because I'd want to write, then I'd get stuck, yada yada yada. But, oh well. I'm just glad you guys like it and stick around.

So, the moment you've been waiting for. Drum roll, please.

The Avengers meeting with Innokenti!

* * *

Quiet.

It was a blanket, surrounding them as tightly as the one Loki had wrapped himself in. A sheet full of holes, not bringing comfort, but letting the cold air touch their skin. It was something he would rather be rid of. Tony had cried his last tear hours ago. He wouldn't speak, no matter how much his roommate tried to bait him. No, he just sat there. Hands in his lap. Eyes blank and distant. Tears had left streaks down the grime on his face.

Loki knew how he felt. When he was too old to be considered a little boy, yet still too young to go to battle. Thor would proudly follow his father to war, sometimes trying to lead. Loki would hardly think of him for days. He was just happy to have some peace.

Then a messenger would alert them of a brutal attack, killing many warriors.

He would sit up long into the night, too proud to seek solace from his mother. Of course, he imagined Thor would be stupid enough to get himself killed. Young, brash, and believing himself to be indestructable, he was probably the one who caused the attack. And Loki would be furious at him. Because, even though he could hardly stand that brute sometimes, he didn't know what he would do if he lost him.

Of course, that was so long ago. Things were so different, now. But that hopelessness in Tony's eyes felt too close to home.

However, with their earlier exchange, Loki wasn't going to spend a lot of time trying to comfort him. He was just glad that the man had stopped crying.

Loki rubbed one of his eyes, wincing at the dull ache. Innokenti sure could pack a punch, for a human. He had covered Loki's face with make up while he was in the rice pile. Good, quality stuff, too. No one noticed he had even so much as a bruise. Sure, he could wipe it off, if he wanted. Only, if he did, he was sure that his abuser would make him regret it. And Loki was tired. He didn't want to deal with that anymore. No, rest is what he craved. Time to give his body a chance to heal, as slow as the process was. The pain in his belly and muscles _was_ subsiding a bit.

But the heavy silence, well, he was going to have to do something about that. It was making his skin itch.

He groaned, pressing the palms of his hands against his forehead. He discreetly glanced at Tony to see what his reaction was.

It was nonexistent. The guy just didn't seem to care.

Loki groaned louder, exaggerating a bit while squeezing his eyes tightly shut.

Tony just continued ignoring him. Kind fellow, he was.

"Stark?" Loki called. "Staaaaark."

Loki scowled in his direction. He did not like being ignored.

"Anthony? Anthony. Answer me. Answer me. Say something? Anything? Please? Please, please, please? Pleeeeeaaase?"

"Shut up. I don't want to hear anything you have to say."

"I was able to get you to speak, wasn't I?" he smirked.

Tony turned away from him, curling up against the cold.

"Stubborn little thing, aren't you?"

"Loki, I told you I don't want to hear it."

"So, you plan on being silent the rest of the time you're here? I don't think you can do it."

"I didn't say that. I would like it if _you_ were silent until then."

"Do you really think your Avengers will find you?"

"Yes."

"You have a lot of faith in them, don't you? Probably not so much in yourself."

"I've been trying to come up with a way to get out since they brought me to this dump."

Loki scratched where the collar was rubbing his skin.

"But there's nothing here," Tony continued.

He clenched a fist and punched the wall.

Only to cringe and whimper when he realized what he had done.

"Was that a stroke of genius?" Loki asked dryly.

Tony shook his hand. He had scraped his knuckles up pretty good.

"I just want my life back," he said so quietly that Loki could barely hear him. "Is that so much to ask? Isn't this enough?"

Loki pawed at his collar again, to no avail. "Are you asking me directly?"

Tony laid down on the floor, still turned away from him.

"Stark, I'm going to say this once more. I am not in on this. I have no control over what they put you through."

The room became silent again.

Tony no longer felt angry or confused. He had been washed over by a deep sadness that wouldn't leave until he knew his family was okay. There was no room for anything else. Except for exhaustion, depression's favorite companion. He couldn't give up. He had been stuck here, doing nothing but trying to survive. There had to be a way. There had to be a way out.

His thoughts were interrupted when the drone came in.

He had nothing with him. No food, no water, no chains. It was a first.

"It's time to go," he said to Loki. "Sir."

Loki rolled his eyes and had a good chuckle at that. Were they serious? They were going to milk this for all it was worth.

"Oh, so I'm sir now?" he laughed.

"There's really no need to pretend anymore. I know you want to keep Stark on his toes, but it's unnecessary now."

Tony bristled beside him.

"Well, that wouldn't be hard," Loki said bitterly. "He is quite a fool."

Tony didn't latch onto his words. He was no fool. He wouldn't let Loki have the satisfaction of making him look like one.

The drone opened the cage door and tried to help Loki to his feet. He snatched his arms away from him, nearly losing his balance, thanks to the sudden bought of wooziness.

"Are you alright?"

"Fine," he snapped.

The drone held the door open for him as he left the cage, still feeling light headed. When the drone closed the door behind him, he took a key from his pocket and removed the collar from Loki's neck. He was surprised, happy to be free of the thing.

"Come on," the drone motioned for him to follow. "We don't want to be late."

Loki glanced back at Tony. He was in the same spot as he had been in before.

Were they really going to take him to the Avengers? The thought scared him for a second. He was in no condition to be around them. At all. He had already pissed them off. No doubt they would love to get their hands on him.

He hesitated before leaving the room entirely.

Tony had been watching, though he hadn't been obvious about it. Only lifting his head when they had left. Someone was lying. Someone was lying, but there was no plain and simple answer. They both had a motive. But who's was more important?

He was going to figure this out. He was determined. He was a man on a mission. Every detail demanded attention. Every single thing that was out of the ordinary. Even things that weren't.

Which was why he happened to notice that Loki's collar wasn't removed until after he was outside of the cage.

oooooooooooooooooo

When Loki was in the hall, he was quickly surrounded by men who handcuffed and chained him. They tied a scarf around his mouth before he could alert Tony with a 'see, I told you so'.

He was taken to one of the many small, dark rooms where Innokenti and two more henchmen were waiting for him.

"There's my boy," Innokenti smiled. He ran his finger along Loki's jawline. Loki quickly pulled away.

Innokenti snatched the scarf away from his mouth. He stepped back, giving his prisoner a long, hard look.

"Well, you've watched them enough," he said to the two men on either side. "Agostino? Martino? This is what you've been trained for. Are you ready?"

They both nodded.

Loki braced himself, thinking that they were about to hurt him. But was surprised when their forms began to change.

Shocked when he saw their transformation.

Standing before him, was _him_. And Tony.

They could shape shift?

"Do you like it?" Innokenti asked, seeming to be quite proud of their accomplishments. "Our own little copies of you two. Though I'd have to say, one of each is more than enough."

Loki closed his mouth after having dropped his jaw at what had just happened.

"Your magic is quite useful."

"How are you using my magic?" Loki managed to ask. "Surely you haven't directly injected it into them?"

"No, not exactly. But I wouldn't tell you all of my secrets."

Loki shook his head.

_How?_

"Then why show me at all?"

"I just thought it would be a fun little game we could play. How do you know that who you're interacting with is really who you think they are? Hmm?"

"Stark?"

"Yes. Martino here makes a good impression of him, doesn't he? He could have been the one sitting next to you for hours, while I had my fun with Mr. Stark."

Loki looked up at the smiling Martino. At first glance, he did look a lot like Tony. Even that stupid smirk. Pretty good, he had to admit.

But there were giveaways. His nose wasn't round enough, his hair wasn't the exact same color. There were things about his eyes, his ears, many of his features that weren't quite exact. One would have to give him a good look, but he was not a perfect Tony. And the other one, well, Loki had seen himself in the mirror enough times and this guy was not him. Also, the men couldn't do much more than features. The "Tony" was short and the "Loki" was tall and thin. They couldn't shift the shapes of their bodies yet. Were they even good enough to hold their forms for very long?

Not likely. Shape shifting was tricky. His teachers were impressed with how well he latched on and how quickly he learned. Even then, it took years for him to master it.

And these two men, well, with their fingers constantly changing back and forth to their own, so much so that one had to shove his hands in his pockets, Loki wasn't going to be jealous of them any time soon.

"Impressive," he said, adding a bit of annoyance to his voice. He had to make it believable.

"Isn't it? I don't especially trust those Avengers to stay true to their word."

"So, you're not staying true to yours."

"No."

Well, that was a relief, considering Loki wasn't going to get beaten to a pulp. But, that also meant staying there much longer.

"Now, stay here and be a good boy for me. I can't have Mr. Stark knowing you're still here."

Right.

They tied him in a corner, then stood around, guarding him. Martino and Agostino changed back to their original forms and followed Innokenti as he left the room.

oooooooooooooooooooooo

Tony wasn't left along much longer. When the drone came back for him, he felt a bit of excitement that he may be with his family again soon.

His joy was soon diminished when he was taken to another room. There were TV screens everywhere, showing the insides of other cages with other prisoners.

"Look at this," the drone pointed to a screen. The footage was black and white. It was a large, empty space.

"What is it?" Tony asked.

"This is where they'll be meeting your friends."

Tony felt a frantic anger. It was a trap.

They were playing with him. Again.

"They won't win. Innokenti won't win," he glanced at the drone, trying to catch his reaction. "And neither will Loki."

The drone smiled.

They wanted to play with him? Okay. He would play along.

oooooooooooooooooo

No one said a word throughout the ride to the warehouse.

Natasha obsessively checked her pocket to make sure she hadn't dropped the computer chip. Clint sat beside her, staring out the window, bow and arrows at his feet. Steve was in the front seat, his face steely and dark compared to the bright colors of his costume. Thor preferred to fly above them.

SHIELD agents were following not very far behind. Everyone was armed and ready. They had no idea what they would be getting themselves into. The city was put on high alert. It wouldn't be surprising if their enemies had another attack planned.

Every so often, the agent who was driving the car would speak to one of the others, giving out directions. Telling them to back off a bit or turn down a street so they could circle around the building when they got there. They would have the place surrounded.

Knowing Loki was going to be there made Natasha's blood boil. This was a difficult situation to be in. Clint had asked her that morning, with a twinge of bitterness, if he would be joining them. She didn't answer right away. But, in the end, she gave in. They needed all the help they could get, especially since Bruce had to make sure they didn't try anything with Mia. It was against her better judgement, but Clint had never failed them before. Not when he was in his right mind. But what tricks could Loki have up his sleeve? How far would he go?

The twenty minute drive dragged on for what seemed like hours. When they finally pulled up to the large building, her insides twisted up. It was the pre battle nerves. The thrill of getting ready for a fight.

"Okay, guys. Let's go."

ooooooooooooooooooooooo

Tony didn't take his eyes off the screen. The building was still empty. He felt impatient and anxious, flexing his fingers, just waiting for something to happen.

They needed time to get there. Okay. He knew that.

But as time moved forward, the anticipation was getting the best of him. He wanted to scream.

Then, a light spread over the floor of the warehouse. Shadows moved toward the middle of the screen. Standing there was Innokenti and Loki.

And himself?

A blink and a double take didn't change what was in front of him. Wearing the same clothes, covered in bruises and scars, yes, they had an imposter that looked like him.

They had some advanced technology that he didn't know about. Probably something to do with Loki's magic.

Loki.

He was standing there beside Innokenti. Even with the fuzzy, not so great footage, Tony could see that bored look of indifference on Loki's face. And he looked healthy.

It could be him. It most certainly _could_ be him.

But they had an imposter Tony.

So, had they figured out a way to harness Loki's magic or was it really Loki and he was the one creating the imposter?

Which was it?

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

They were in defensive positions as they crept toward the building. The agents were hiding all around the warehouse. Thor was in front, marching confidently with his hammer ready. Natasha wanted to tell him to slow down a bit, but didn't want to give their position away. However, he was not one to be sneaky. As soon as he caught sight of the men inside, he busted the window open with his hammer.

"Thor!" Natasha hissed.

He paid no attention to her and had climbed through the window, landing inside. Steve and Clint trotted behind him, following suit, leaving Natasha to bring up the rear.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

When he finally saw them rush into the warehouse, Tony jumped up, crawling closer to the screen. The chains attached to his handcuffed wrists weighed him down, but he was inches away.

"Front row seats to the show," the drone said.

Tony ignored him. Because there they were, right in front of him. Even though they were who knows how many miles away.

Thor was the first one in, striding speedily to the trio, ready to pummel them with his hammer. Until Innokenti swiftly took a gun from his pocket and pointed it to Imposter Tony's head.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

"We had a deal," Innokenti calmly said to Thor. "You shouldn't break it."

Thor stopped in his tracks.

"I hope you plan on keeping your end," Clint said. He had his loaded bow and arrow pointed directly at Innokenti. "I can skewer you in less than a second."

Loki moved forward, blocking Clint's aim at Innoketi.

"I'm sure you could," he said. "But you most certainly wouldn't be able to do the same to me."

Clint's grip on the bow tightened. "Well, if it isn't my old buddy."

"End this now, Loki," Thor demanded.

"No, I don't believe I want to."

Thor closed the distance between them until they were nose to nose.

"I do not care what you want. You will end this!"

"Guys, watch him," Steve said. He heard the click of the gun as Innokenti loaded it.

"You should back off," Loki said smugly to his brother.

Thor didn't. Not immediately. He was staring rather hard at Loki as if he were trying to figure something out.

"I have it!" Natasha called out to the group, holding the computer chip in the air. "I have it. Now, let Tony go."

"Hold on, Natalia," Innokenti said. "It's not going to be that simple."

"We bring you the file, you give us Tony. How could it not be that simple?"

"It's just a matter of precaution," Loki said. "Give it to us, so that we may examine it. If it is what we want, we will hand Mr. Stark over to you."

Natasha refused to back down.

"I don't see a computer. How will you check it?"

"We have a computer," Innokenti said.

"Then where is it? Is it invisible?"

"You're bluffing," Clint said. "You don't have anything to check it with."

"And how do we know _you_ are not bluffing?" Loki asked.

"Tony is much too valuable for us to risk everything with a bluff," Natasha said.

"And this information is much too valuable to us."

The stand off, once again.

Thor was getting more and more impatient.

"This is foolish. We hand each over at the same time. Otherwise, we will force him from you."

"You still believe that brute force will solve everything?" Loki shook his head.

"I am giving you a chance, Loki. One chance."

"Guys," Tony's weak voice broke the argument between the two parties.

They all turned to him. He looked right at them, one eye swollen and dark.

"Please. Just do what they say. Please."

Thor's nostrils flared as he looked between his brother and his friend. Clint clinched his jaw.

"I just want to come home."

"See?" Loki said. "How could you put him through this?"

"You put him through this!" Thor shouted.

"Guys, enough," Natasha said. "You want the files? Okay, here they are."

ooooooooooooooooooooooo

The tension was growing between them. Tony couldn't hear a word they were saying, but their body language screamed it. Especially when Thor got so close to Loki. He was almost sure he was going to punch him.

Then, Natasha went through the group, arm out as if she were about to hand something to Loki. He couldn't see it, yet he knew what it was.

_No, Natasha, don't give it to him!_

But something else was going on.

Steve, who had seemed to be mostly quiet throughout the ordeal, had been slowly circling around them. With barely there movements, he had made his way behind Innokenti.

With a flash, he threw his shield and knocked the gun out of his hand.

Tony could only grin at the startled expression that was plastered over Innokenti's face. And the drone, well, he didn't seem too happy.

"Still think your guy can win?" Tony asked.

Imposter Tony had looked just as surprised. Loki ran to attack Steve, but was immediately stopped by his ram of a brother.

Innokenti was, of course, never unprepared.

He pulled a gun out of his other pocket. Tony felt his stomach flip. He tried to shoot Thor.

It didn't even faze him. He was too busy giving Loki the beating of his life.

Clint's arrows were flying, not missing their mark. He got Innokenti in the leg. The man fell to one knee, trying to yank the arrow out of his flesh.

Imposter Tony just tried to get out of the way.

oooooooooooooooooooooo

"Tony!" Natasha called out.

He didn't stop at the sound of his name.

Natasha ran after him, trying to grab his shirt.

"Tony, come here! It's okay, we've got you now!"

The sound of gunfire. She ducked, trying to protect her head. Instincts told her to grab her own gun and fire back. Innokenti was up, though limping. They had to make sure he stayed down.

Then, two things happened at once to change the game.

"Romanoff!" Thor cried out.

She spun around to see what caused his distress.

He was no longer beating Loki.

Loki wasn't there.

A thin, young man was lying there in his place, trying to cover his face with his arms.

And it was when she wasn't paying attention, that Innokenti pointed the gun at Tony.

She didn't think.

She ran to, what, block him? Push him out of the way? Get his attention?

Steve had leaped to tackle Innokenti. But it wasn't before she heard the pop and felt a harsh sting in her back.

"Natasha!" That was Clint. "Oh, God, Natasha!"

oooooooooooooooooooooo

Tony could only watch with his mouth open.

Natasha fell. Immediately, agents flooded the room, guns out and pointed toward Innokenti. Steve had him pinned. There was nowhere for him to go. Other agents caught Imposter Tony, who was still in a panic. Thor was staring at Natasha in horror.

Clint was at her side in seconds, holding her hand. No doubt he was frantically trying to spill out words of comfort.

Tony couldn't speak. He was reliving the terror from the other day.

This situation. These events. It was his worst nightmare.


End file.
